


Just Another Day

by Mearcyn



Category: Undertale
Genre: Bad Puns, Depression, F/M, Nightmares, Rape/Non-con Elements, Slow Burn, Thoughts of Suicide, im sorry i am not good with tags, maybe smut eventually, more to come - Freeform, sleep deprevation
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-06-25
Updated: 2018-07-12
Packaged: 2018-07-15 22:18:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 18
Words: 41,611
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7240702
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mearcyn/pseuds/Mearcyn
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>You've been living with sleep disorders your whole life. Couple that with depression and you are the epitome of miserable. Well, your own kind of miserable. Maybe all you need is some good food, bad laughs, and some friends to keep you moving in the right direction...</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Restless Nights

**Author's Note:**

> So...! This is my first time trying to write anything resembling a story. I am not sure how long this will go for, and there isn't a plot yet but lemme know what ya think so far?  
> As for updates...I'll keep it going for as long as I am inspired, but im not sure on an update schedule..
> 
> Comments appreciated ! Let me know if you think this is worth continuing...I can get kind of wordy...ill try to shut up more in the future..
> 
> Also, Reedz is a fucking slob sometimes.. just a heads up

The storm was raging at full force when it finally startled you awake. A loud crack through the blackened sky jolted you from your otherwise dreamless rest. Your left hand searched aimlessly in the dark before finding your smartphone on a table. 

A quick button tap revealed it to be only 2 o'clock in the morning. You groaned to yourself, draping your right arm over your eyes. There was no way you were going to be able to get back to sleep now. Your chest ached pitifully as you gave in to your awakened state. You were wearing only a white tank top as you threw your legs over the side of the couch. 

You basically slept in your living room now since you didn't sleep very well confined to your bedroom. As you flicked on the table lamp you drearily took in your surroundings. A bottle of sleeping pills and a plate of half eaten pasta sat on your living room table a couple feet from you, looking much less appetizing than it did 2 hours ago. Clothes were strewn about the room and hanging off of furniture, some fast food garbage laid untouched, amazon delivery boxes littered the corners of the room, and video game cases dotted every surface. 

Your small apartment consisted of a decently sized living room, 2 bedrooms, a bathroom across from the bedrooms, and a dining area that connected to an open kitchen which you were determined to keep clean. After a painful week of killing what you thought were hundreds of fruit flies, you learned very quickly that your kitchen _at least_ needed to stay immaculate. 

You stood from your old lumpy couch and twisted left then right, cracking your spine until you were satisfied. You were instantly rewarded with a different kind of back pain as you wobbled into your kitchen for a glass of water. You had to be ready for class in, oh lets see, 8 hours. You sighed and brushed your hair out of your face. 

You hated whatever the hell sleep disorder you suffered from. Either you slept for 2-4 hours, or not at all, and your body never wanted to rest at a normal time. _Oh no no_ , it had to be at times when you weren't allowed to sleep, like during class, or work, or meetings. 

You could feel your chest tightening with anxiety and decided it was time to go for a walk. It always seemed to help you relax when you went on walks, something about getting up and moving around helped ease your stress away. Plus, storms didn't really bother you, maybe you would get hit by lightning and all your problems would be over. You silently chastised yourself for that last thought as you threw on some sweats, grabbed your keys and wallet, put on flip flops and marched out of the door with an umbrella.

It wasn't as bad as you thought it would be outside. Sure it was pouring rain, there was lightning cracking every 2 minutes, and you could barely see 2 feet in front of you - okay it was not your _best_ idea to go for a walk during a storm, but bad decisions plagued your daily life. Luckily though it was a warm night so it wasn't all that unpleasant. You trudged on for a few more minutes, letting your thoughts wander a bit. 

You reminisced about how you ended up in this town. You originally moved here to attend a specific college you had your eye on. It offered a computer science course that would allow you to learn everything you needed to create websites, code video games, and even animate to a degree. 

You had always been a bit of a computer geek so you finally decided to pursue a career encompassing that passion. Everything usually came fairly easily to you, but this course was different. You started to get frustrated when you couldn't understand how to manipulate some coding and you were beginning to feel like maybe you should just give up. Maybe you would never succeed, maybe you should drop out and go work retail somewhere for the rest of your life. You tried to stop moping but your chest ached....you sighed. 

The rain went from pouring buckets to a comfortable shower. You noticed not a single car was out on the road and it was the most quiet it has been for a while. The last month has had what felt like never ending construction on the road in front of your apartment. That same stretch of road had been fixed 4 months ago and here they were, at it again. 

You just wished all the construction workers would be _sucked into one of those random sinkholes_. 

You stopped walking and rubbed your forehead irritably. You didn't mean to have such negative thoughts all the time. The construction workers were just doing their job and here you were, thinking up ways they could die. You sighed and looked at your phone...2:23 am. 

You looked up and realized you came to a stop outside of one of the newer establishments that had been built in your neighborhood. It was a bar, and above the set of steps that lead inside was the name "Grillby's", lit up in red neon. 

You stared at the sign for a moment, listening to the electricity buzz through the name as rain pitter-pattered around you. You were never into the bar scene. All it ever landed you was awkward conversations and feeling of not belonging. You considered stopping in anyways though, just to check it out... Maybe kill some time.

As you debated with yourself about going in, the tinkling of a bell sounded. The decision had been made for you as a large white dog in armor stepped out of the door and noticed you, their tongue hanging lazily out of the side of their maw. They cocked their head to the side and stepped over to make room for you and held the door open. You noticed the bell hanging down from above the door and then met the dog monsters eyes. 

It had been about 5 years since the barrier came down, and monsters had basically mingled with society pretty well. There were still idiot assholes who didn't approve of monsters coexisting with humans and there were issues in the media talking about tragedies all the time. You were sure there were other, bigger, problems that they had to deal with, but politics were never your thing. Overall, you had only ever met one monster that gave you a problem, and even they weren't as horrible as some of the humans in your life. You had never been humanity's biggest fan, so when monsters made their appearance you took to their side just about immediately.

You were pulled out of your thoughts by a sudden, questioning whimper. The dog monster was shifting uncomfortably, avoiding your eyes. You felt embarrassed that you had been standing there for a moment too long, just staring at the gentle-pup. You smiled and stepped inside the bar giving a quiet "thank you" to the dog monster as they left. 

You felt some tension leave your shoulders as the warm colors of the interior mixed with the smokey scent inside made you feel at home. What didn't make you feel at home was the ever noticeable 'squelch' and 'splop' sound your flip flops made on the hardwood as you walked. Four steps inside and you nearly slipped. Out of frustration you pulled off your flip flops and decided to go barefoot the rest of the way up to the bar. 

As you sat on a bar stool you were immediately greeted by an orange-flamed fire monster. He was wearing a collared white shirt with a black vest over top. His sleeves were rolled up to above where his elbows would be and a pair of glasses were suspended in his flames. You wondered why his shirt didn't catch on fire. The word 'magic' was supplied by your brain as he stood across from you and you felt a gentle warmth radiate from his flames. Though he had no eyes you felt as if he was scrutinizing you. You cleared your throat.

"Ahem...uhm...I h-hope it's okay I came in? Are you closing soon? I know it's late, I can leave, just let me know..." your voice came out quieter than you would have liked due to disuse. You were just noticing how soaked you ended up from the rain as you dripped down onto the polished floor. The umbrella was pretty useless in that storm, you mused.

The bartender shook his head and picked up a glass, cleaning it with a white rag as he answered. His voice came out mildly raspy and deep, like he had just awakened from sleep himself. The flames he was made of seemed to make pops and cracks as he spoke, reminding you very much of a bonfire.

"I usually close up at 2:00 am but tonight's closing hour has been extended a bit due to-" he was cut off suddenly by the door slamming open. The bell rattled so intensely you thought it would fall off of its little hinges.

A couple of drunk humans walked in then, barely making it up the steps. The guy, kinda short, no taller than 5'5 sauntered in with a woman hanging onto his arm for dear life. It seemed he might have been wearing a tie at some point tonight but it was long gone now, replaced with a myriad of smeared lipstick marks along his neck. In your opinion, his face looked like it hit every branch on his descent from the ugly tree. He smoothed his free hand through his dark, disheveled, greasy hair. The woman was was taller than him, blonde, and had blue eyes that looked more glazed than a doughnut. Her makeup was smeared and she honestly looked like shit. She was probably fairly attractive normally.

You snorted at the scene and rested your elbow on the bar, your chin sitting in your palm. The drunk couple peered around and the blonde stood up taller. She squinted while taking in her surroundings and began to whine.

"Sssssteve.. why arewe aht some fuckin monsssterr...monssster......" she struggled for a moment trying to think of the right word."....shithole?!" And you instantly retract the thought that she could ever be attractive. The blonde could barely stand at this point and somehow managed to make a disgusted look as she slurred her words. You were 99% sure she either forgot the word "bar" or she was too stupid to have ever learned it to begin with.

"Cool yer tits babe, I know a monster 'ere, is cool is cool.." he trailed off as he scanned the bar. His eyes fell onto you and you tensed up. 

You prayed vehemently that he would look away, you hoped he wouldn't walk towards you, you cursed to yourself when he sat down next to you at the bar. Fucking fuck. WHY? You don't step into a bar for years and within 3 minutes you _already_ have unwelcome company. You screamed internally and plastered on a neutral expression, watching out of your peripheral vision as the two sat on the bar stools next to you. The blonde was obviously struggling to balance in her seat to the left of her date but _"Steve"_ paid her no mind. 

"Well wouldja lookie 'ere! Some decent company in 'ere af'erall! Wuzza cutie like you doin n' dumps like this?" Steve grinned crookedly at you and winked, his breath reeking of alcohol. Your stomach twisted at the overwhelming odor and you grimaced. He's probably been wasted for hours..

"Don't talk to me please" your voice came out flat and monotone, hopefully giving him the hint to buzz off. You have had just about zero sleep and your patience was too low to deal with drunken racist assholes.

He gaped for a moment, his brain functioning even slower due to the alcohol but then an offended look crossed his features. He formed a scowl and scooted closer to you. His head bobbed a bit unsteadily as he tried to refocus his thoughts.

"Whoa whoa whoa missy, what kind a manners is at? I'm just tryin' to be nice n' make conversation! I thought humans should stick t'gether! You ain't gotta be a bitch 'bout it!" His right pointer finger jabbed out towards your chest and you had to lean back a bit to avoid it. His little tirade caused him to spit a little as he talked too, and you started to feel anger boiling in your chest. 

You laughed a bit bitterly. 

"A bitch? I told you politely not to 'speak to me'." You emphasize the last few words as you stood up from your bar stool. There had to be somewhere else you could sit and get away from this mess. You noticed you still had a good couple inches on him even though you were standing up. Steve opened his mouth as if he were going to say something but you beat him to the punch and dug into him.

"You come in here like you _own_ the place, _act rudely_ , and insinuate that _IM_ being a bitch?! You can go **fuck** yourself dude..." your words drip venom as you stare him in the eyes for a second and look over his shoulder. A smirk spread across your face of its own accord.

"Actually...it looks like that's _exactly_ what you'll be doing tonight..." You lazily point one finger past him and he blearily follows your gaze. The blonde has passed out at the bar magnificently. Her long hair is fanned out around her, her face is down on the counter and she's drooling. Your brain tells you that this moment needs to be saved so you pull out your cellphone and take a quick pic. Steve notices and slaps your smartphone roughly out of your hands. Your phone loudly clatters to the floor, its case flying off of it and the battery skittering across the hardwood floors.

" _HEY YOU_ -" you growl but get cut off by the fuming shorty.

" **YA FUCKING CUNT!** You think yer some kind of smart-ass Eh?" You instinctively recoil slightly from his raised voice, wincing. Steve ungracefully stands from his stool and your heart stutters for a moment, surprised. As much as you'd love to punch this guy square in the jaw, you had never really been in a fist fight before. 'Do I really have to-' your thoughts get cut off as he swings at your face. You managed to step back and dodge the hay-maker. The momentum was strong enough that he loses his balance and stumbles sideways. If that had connected....

You start to reconsider some life choices you've made in the last couple of minutes..

You lift your hands with palms facing him un-threateningly, taking a small step backwards. 

"Hey dude, chill out! Do you really want to- _ACK!_ " you're cut off as he slips on the wet floor, grabbing you around your waist. You both fall to the ground, causing you to knock your head on the hardwood. You wince as you grab Steve's shoulders and try to pry him off of your torso. He buries his face roughly into your stomach, and you have to fight with all your might to keep from screaming in panic at the contact. Some distinct memories come rushing to the surface of your mind but you manage to keep your emotions at bay.

" **FUCK! Let GO of ME, ASSHOLE!** " your voice has raised more than a few octaves as you struggle to get free from his grip around your midsection. You considered trying to knee him in the groin- 

"she said to _lay_ off, 'Steve' " a deep voice emanates from above your head. You look up to see some skeleton staring down at you. They were wearing a blue zipped-up hoodie that had a fur trim, some sweat pants and a pair of sneakers. He reached down and roughly grabbed Steve by the back of his shirt, lifting him up. Steve did not respond, instead just limply being lifted into the air. You breathed a sigh of relief. He must have passed out...

"Thanks...didn't think it was going to escalate-" you were cut off by Steve suddenly puking down onto your chest... 

 

With your head down on the bar counter, you could hear the opening and closing of a car door, Steve spouting some obscenities, and then the blissful sound of the car driving away. Someone had called a taxi for the human duo. You still couldn't believe what had happened. You had to strip your shirt off and wash it in the bar bathroom sink, hoping to get some if not most of the stench off of you. Luckily or unluckily for you it seemed that Steve had not eaten anything for a while so it was mostly alcohol in his vomit. You gagged a bit remembering the chore and grimly considered that no mattered how much you showered, that smell would never leave your nose. Your hair only went down to your shoulders so you had narrowly avoided the "pick vomit out of your hair" scenario, but you still felt disgusting. You deserved this, somewhere, written in the cosmos, you did something, or you will do something and this was your punishment. You sighed dejectedly to yourself.

"heh... you look _retch_ 'ed. guess that's one way to end a dis' _puke_ "

You groaned and refused to look at the skeleton that was now making fun of your situation.

"Ha. ha. ha. you are just hilarious mr bones.." you lift your head long enough to drink some of the water the bartender had kindly left for you, then return to hiding your face on the counter. You debated walking home immediately after the incident but you honestly didn't feel like sitting in your apartment. Then again sitting in a bar with lingering vomit on your shirt wasn't that appealing either. You had just about convinced yourself to leave when the skeleton monster piped up again.

"nah that's my old mans title, call me sans. sans the skeleton."

"Sans? Like the font?" this made you give him some of your attention. You looked in the direction his voice had been coming from and was greeted by an empty bar stool. You quickly looked to your other side and was met with a skeleton finger in your cheek. You swatted it away half-playfully, a small grin tugging at your lips. 

"yeah, its a family thing." he shrugged and leaned back on the counter. He watched you, or rather looked through you, curiosity crinkling around his eye sockets as you laid your head onto your folded arms on the counter and thought about what he said. So everyone in his family has a font based name? You thought of all the crazy fonts you've downloaded onto your computer and had to stifle a snort when you imagined someone named "porcupine pickle".

"so what are you doin at a bar at 2 am?" Sans roused you out of your mental reverie.

"Same to you..."

"i asked first."

"And I asked second, should we keep stating the obvious?" you took another swig of your water and stared at the bony monster.

Sans chuckled a bit. After a moment of considering what to say, he spoke. 

"i have a _tendon_ -cy to not sleep. so i stopped by my pals for a bite." he gave a half wave to the bartender across the room as he went about wiping down empty tables.

You gave Sans a more discerning look over and noticed he indeed had circles under his eyes sockets. You didn't question how that was even possible. MMmmmmmaaaggiiiiccccccc..

"Yeah, you look _dead_ tired" you smirked a bit, wondering if that pun was offensive to skeleton monsters. Sans eye lights(?) seemed to brighten and his grin tugged a bit wider as if answering your unspoken question. You wondered if he always smiled like that. A perpetual grin stuck on his face. God, that would be tiring... smiling all the time... Your smirk dropped considerably at that thought..

"hey, speaking ill of the dead is a _grave_ mistake" he winked and grabbed a bottle of ketchup.

You watched mildly surprised as he chugged straight from the Heinz ketchup bottle. The only other time you had ever seen anything remotely like that was when you dared one of your best friends to drink a random mixture of condiments from your fridge. She was drunk off her ass so it didn't take much to convince her to do it. But unlike her, Sans didn't start to puke afterwards. You whistled low as he set the bottle back down.

"You trying to impress me? Just how much do you like ketchup?" you propped one arm up on the bar and rested your chin in your palm again, your body fully facing him now. Sans face erupted with a shit eating grin before he answered.

"i love it...from my head 'to ma toes'.." he waited patiently as he scanned your face for a reaction. For one small, blissful moment you didn't understand what he could have possibly been searching for. Then it hit you, painfully, all at once. Your eyes suddenly widened in comprehension, and realization hit you like a punch to the gut. You couldn't help but laugh at that point.

"GAWD that was...." you laughed hard, as if you hadn't laughed in a very long time, which actually was fairly accurate. You covered your mouth to stifle yourself a bit, your face beginning to turn slightly red. Actual tears were forming in the corners of your crinkled eyes and Sans began laughing at your reaction. 

"That was _awful_.." you snorted a little bit as you let yourself be happy for a moment. "How did I not get that instantly....it's not even that _funny_!" a new round of laughter flooded your system, as if a dam had been broken. 

"im glad you finally _mustard_ up the energy to laugh" he grinned and was about to go on, when the flaming bartender walked over. He and Sans exchanged glances for a moment before Sans sighed and shrugged his shoulders. As your laughing subsided to small snickers, Sans decided to speak up. 

"as much as id _lava_ to keep making you laugh, Grillbz says it's closing time." Sans took one more swig from the ketchup bottle and hopped off of his bar stool. You did the same, finishing off your glass of water before heading towards the door. You turned back to the bartender and smiled contentedly.

"Sorry about the commotion earlier...." you cleared your throat and blushed a bit before continuing on. "And for...not actually buying anything..." you grimaced a bit, feeling bad for wasting his time but he waved you off, his crackly voice filling the silence. You hadn't even noticed that the bar was empty save for you, Sans and the barkeep now.

"Don't worry about it, come back again sometime.." his flames popped and snapped as if he understood that you just needed somewhere to relax. He added before you went out the door with Sans, "and Sans, I'm glad you're feeling better..". Sans grinned back at the bartender appreciatively and then you both ducked out of the establishment.


	2. No Reception

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Where Reader realizes she needs to adult more often.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the short chapter... but I couldn't sleep so here it is! \\(*❛‿❛)/ Ta-da?  
> Maybe it's easier to read posted this way.....I'll keep experimenting  
> Thank you for the feedback on my first chapter!  
> As always, comments are welcome~!

The storm had all but stopped while you were inside Grillby's, and it left behind a cool chill in the air. You shivered and rubbed your bare arms, goosebumps freckling your skin. You hadn't really considered wearing anything proper for the weather, but you hadn't considered staying out for quite this long either. One more bad decision to throw onto the pile.

"Looks like it's finally time I head home.." reluctance weighed down on your body but you honestly have no where else to go at this hour. You give Sans a sheepish grin, "Thanks for the help back there, sorry about your shoes...". Sans ended up in the splash zone of the now dubbed "Steve Incident".

"its cool, they've seen worse but they're still _kicking_ " he winked one of his sockets at you and you couldn't help but grin at his pun. He shoved his hands into his pockets and started to walk down the street.

"Hey Sans?" 

"mm?" He stopped and glanced behind him. You looked as if you had thought of the best joke in the world. Oh this he had to hear. "whats up?".

" _Sole_ long, See you _leather_!" you barely kept a straight face as you turned and began walking in the opposite direction. A deep chuckle resounded from behind you and you felt fairly accomplished. 

All the way home you recounted everything that had happened in such a short amount of time. You went to a bar, met a hot bartender, almost got in a fight, exchanged jokes with a skeleton...laughed... _smiled_...it was a nice change though you could have done without the vomit. 

You took your apartment steps 2 at a time, eager to get out of the chilly night air. You set your keys down on your dining room table once you got inside and almost flopped down onto your couch. You stopped yourself mid motion as you remembered the vomit incident. You immediately rushed to your bathroom and was naked before you closed the door.

One hot shower later and you were in your comfiest sleep pants and a band t-shirt. You stepped out of the bathroom and finally noticed just how bad you had let your apartment get. You felt more energized thanks to that walk and figured you may as well do something for the next...you glanced at your microwave to check the time. 3:15 am.

If you had groaned any louder your neighbors would have thought a zombie monster moved in. You still had about 7 hours until class and suddenly you didn't feel like doing _anything_ again. You dragged your feet to your bedroom and pulled out a laundry basket. 

"Time to adult..." you muttered and began wandering around your living room, picking up all the random articles of clothing. You really hated picking up the socks in particular. They took up so little room, why even pick them up. In fact, after collecting a few pairs, you didn't bother with the rest. Out of sight, out of mind right? Once your basket was full, you put it down inside your room and closed the door. Washing will have to come later, when it wasn't 3-something in the morning. 

You returned to the living room and glanced around. _Eh....clean enough for now_... You shook your head and fought back the urge to procrastinate. You quickly went to the kitchen and grabbed a trash bag before you could talk yourself out of it. Five minutes later and you had picked up just about every empty fast food container, wrapper, sauce packet, and cup. You willfully ignored the fact that the floors needed vacuumed and deposited the full bag of trash next to your front door. You sighed and finally let yourself flop onto the couch. 

A yawn escaped you as you snuggled up to your pillow. "Just a few minutes" you murmured to yourself before drifting off again.

Your body jolted awake suddenly as you realized something.

"Fuck!! My phone!... shit!" you went to grab your phone to check the time but...duh....so you glanced at the microwave and saw it illuminating a green 6:27.

You buried your head into your pillow and screamed. This is just another day in the life of ______. Couldn't sleep, and then you got vomited on, and to top it off you lost your damn phone. This is why you don't leave the house anymore! You allowed yourself to wallow in self pity for a couple more minutes. Hell, you even allowed yourself to flail a little bit, kicking your blankets and pillows off of the couch in frustration. So mature.

But you recovered and figured out what you would do. You would look up Grillby's hours of operation, go there before class and scour the floor for your phone. It had to still be there. Grillby might have picked it up too, no need to panic..

In the meantime you needed an alarm clock, so you went to your bedroom and rummaged around in your closet for your old digital one. You used to use it in high school before you owned a cellphone. The shitty thing probably still worked. _Probably_...Though you _did_ throw it against the wall on more than one occasion. You finally found it buried at the bottom of a box of Christmas decorations. 

You plugged it into the wall and waited, hoping to see the front light up with a blinking, bright red 12:00. You quickly realized that there was no hope for the thing, and wrapped it up in its own cord, deciding to just throw it away. Eventually. You might find a use for it right? You tossed it back into the box, like the hoarder that you are, and considered maybe trying to set your microwaves timer as a make-shift alarm.

Since the digital alarm was a bust, you moved on to the next order of business. You sat on your bed and pulled out your laptop. It was covered in different video game stickers. For the Horde, bitches. Once you flipped it open, the screen illuminated your desktop. You opened a search engine, typed in the name "Grillby's" and your area code and found that there wasn't a registered website. What the hell? There wasn't any information posted at all. You sighed irritably and closed your laptop. 

It was probably because it was a monster owned bar. If it wasn't located on the internet then it was probably somewhere on the undernet. The monster version of the internet. You had monster friends that could probably help you out. You reached for your phone...for fucks sake... you laid back onto your pillows and sighed, again. How did you ever survive without the damn thing?

You decided you'd have to walk back to the bar and see if they had posted their hours on a window or something. 

A few minutes later and you were outside of your apartment wearing jeans, sneakers, another band t-shirt, and a light jacket. Your hair was pulled back into a messy ponytail and you had left some bangs hanging in your face.

The rain had died down entirely at this point and the streets were bustling with people already getting started with their day. The sun was shining, birds were birding...you hoped the rest of your day would be decent.

As you retraced your path from earlier you found Grillby's pretty easily, and a familiar figure was leaning against the brick building next to the door.


	3. Breakfast Time

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Where Reader doesn't have to buy a new cellphone

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another short chapter, wheeee!  
> Yeah... I might start making them longer again...iuno.  
> Comments are always appreciated!

The skeleton didn't notice you as you walked towards him. He was mid yawn, his eyes screwed shut and a hand lazily reaching up to touch his teeth by the time you stopped next to him.

"Didn't sleep yet?" you leaned against the building next to him as he popped one socket open to look over at you. His eye lights seemed much dimmer than you remembered them being earlier in the morning, and his smile didn't reach his sockets.

"nah, too busy _picking_ up after a certain someone." his easy grin seemed to return a fraction.

There was a play on words there somewhere, and you didn't realize what he meant until he produced your smartphone from his pocket and dangled it in front of your face.

"DUDE!" you grabbed the phone quickly and looked it over. It was scratched a bit from its encounter with the bar floor last night, but otherwise it was fine. He must have found the battery too, cause the screen lit up as soon as you checked the power button.

"You're a fucking _life_ saver, Thank You! I've been losing my _goddamn_ mind this morning!" you practically squealed with relief as you pocketed it. 

"that's twice i've saved your skin in less than 6 hours" he grinned, satisfied with how happy you were. If there was anything he could do well, it was wait, and seeing your soul light up like that was a bonus. 

"But how did you get it? We both left at the same time..." your question hung in the air for a moment while you studied him. 

He lifted both of his hands and wiggled his fingers, "magggicccc".

You scoffed and gently punched him on the arm as he snickered. 

"Fine, don't answer me, but I do owe you... want breakfast? My treat?" you stuffed your hands into your pockets and watched as he raised his eye brows....eye bones? Whatever.

"eh iuno i have a pretty full schedule of doin nothing" he shrugged and looked at his wrist mockingly as if checking the time. You rolled your eyes and walked passed him a bit, smiling.

"Suit yourself, but I hear this diner down the road has some pretty fancy ketchup...grade A stuff...but if your not interested~" you trailed off and kept walking down the road.

"fancy ketchup? cant turn my _nose_ up at that" he fell into step next to you and you both headed towards downtown.

 

You peeked inside of the little dive restaurant window, checking to see if your friend was on shift this morning. It was a little passed 7:00am and you figured he would be here by now. 

As you both stepped inside, the door jingled due to little bells being tied on the handle. Sans took in the place with a quick glance. There were 6 independent tables in the middle of the floor with 2 booths on both sides of the room. A few humans and monsters were already seated and eating at different spots. The floor was red, tiled, and fairly clean. The walls were orange with retro music records hanging off as decorations. Different pictures of humans littered the walls, a few he recognized from memes and movies.

A gruff voiced yelled out from a kitchen behind a counter. 

"Welcome, someone will be out in a sec..."

"BP, it's ____! You better not be burning down the place!" you called out and smirked as you walked to the counter with Sans in tow.

"bp? you mean-" just as Sans was about to ask, the cat monster dragged himself from out of the kitchen to greet you two.

"You're one to talk, you burn something every- Oh. Sans?" BP turned his attention from you to the skeleton monster.

"hey, how ya been BP?" Sans grin widened as he lazily waved at his old friend from the underground. 

"You know how it is, managing. You know ____?" BP leaned on the counter to talk better with this pal, momentarily forgetting you. You watched the exchange happily. BP hadn't mentioned any of his old friends to you before, and you were beginning to think he was a loner.

"sort of, we just met last night, ill v _ **omit**_ some details though" he glanced at you sideways, shit eating grin already plastered across his mug. 

You groaned loudly and rubbed your face as BP laughed.

"I won't ask, little buddy... so you here to chat or get some grub?" he pulled on an apron and grabbed a notepad as you two looked over the paper menus in front of you.

You both chose a booth to sit in, sitting across from each other.

"so how did you meet bp? he didn't seem the popular type down below.." Sans leaned back in his seat, burying his chin into his hoodie sleepily.

You leaned your elbows onto the table and propped your head up in your hands. 

"Well, I work here. BP was one of the first monsters I met when I moved to this city to go to college. Being a broke student leads you to the cheapest restaurants, and when I saw they were hiring, I jumped on the opportunity." you smiled and thanked the waitress as she delivered your drinks. 

You had ordered some OJ while Sans hadn't order anything. He fiddled with the condiment tray and put a hand to his chest in mock hurt.

"no fancy ketchup, ive been had.."

You laughed and scooted to the edge of your seat.

"No no, I will not be made a liar. I'll be right back!" you quickly got up and made your way back towards the kitchen.

You knocked a couple times on the counter and called out for your co-worker.

"Ey BP? Can I get a bottle of our _fancy_ ketchup?" you heard him grunt out a noise of acknowledgment and made your way back to your seat.

"you have to ask for it special?" he whistled low, and studied you with one eye bone raised. 

You shrugged and smiled to yourself, wondering what he'll think of it.

A minute later and BP came out with a mason jar full of a red substance. He placed it on the table and gave you a wink before returning to the kitchen.

Sans eyed it skeptically, picking it up and hefting it in his hands.

"are you _ribbing_ me here? what is this stuff?" his eye sockets looked at you accusingly.

You folded your arms and leaned towards him a bit, grinning.

"Just try it will ya? I promise it's delicious, scouts honor.." you raised two fingers and crossed your heart.

He hesitated for just a moment longer then unscrewed the lid. 

"you probably aren't even a scout" he rolled his eyes but the smell that wafted out made his eye sockets go wide. He dipped a finger in and then tasted it. 

"whoa.." If his grin went any wider you'd worry his face would crack. 

You laughed as he took a large swig from the bottle. You wondered where the liquid even went inside of a skeleton. Does it drip out? Maybe he has an invisible throat. You studied him as he finished off the bottle and placed it on the table. 

"you weren't tellin' a fibula, this is delicious. what's in it?" 

You were about to answer but then you stopped yourself, a sly grin crossing your features. 

You raised your hands, wiggled your fingers and said "Its a ssssecret". 

He tossed the lid at your head and you dodged it, giggling. 

A moment later, BP showed up with your orders and placed them in front of you both. 


	4. Perspective

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What was Sans doing that night before you ended up in Grillbys? hmmmmm...  
> This is a Sans POV chapter <3

Night was falling as Papyrus darted through the trees. Sans grinned lazily as he followed him deeper into the forests surrounding Snowdin.

"NYEH HEH! HURRY UP BROTHER, THE SHOWS ABOUT TO START! THE GREAT PAPYRUS NEVER SHOWS UP LATE! UNLESS IT IS FASHIONABLE AND COOL!" Papyrus jogged in place as he waited for Sans to catch up a bit. He "nyeh'd" exasperatedly as Sans barely took four steps forwards.

"BROTHER HOW CAN YOU BE SUCH A LAZY BONES? WE MUST HURRY! QUICKLY! SHOULD I CARRY YOU?" Papyrus stood still a moment. Sans watched Paps face as it frowned in consideration.

"nah Paps, im good. you go on ahead and ill find a shortcut.". Sans grin pulled wider as he saw Papyrus begin to jog in place again. Paps was so excited.

"VERY WELL SANS! BUT DO HURRY, AND BE CAREFUL!" Papyrus waved and disappeared into the darkness. Sans heart skipped a beat for a moment watching Papyrus vanish.

'he's on the other side of this hill' he reassured himself. He began to ascend the snowy hillside but noticed his legs were getting heavier. 'what is this _show_ about anyways' he thought to himself as he huffed and struggled to take a couple more steps. 'guess im not making it up this hill' he thought, finally out of breath and began to summon his magic.

To his surprise, none came. He focused and tugged at his soul, trying to get a response, but there was no answer. He felt panic brewing inside and he pushed it down, trying to figure out why he couldn't use his magic or teleport.

"A HUMAN! SANS! I FOUND A HUMAN! THE GREAT PAPYRUS HAS FINALLY DONE IT!" Sans eyes focused up at where his brother had run through the trees, his heart dropping as he heard his brothers voice echo.

"FAME, PRESTIGE, POPULARITY! ALL WITHIN MY GRASP! TINY HUMAN! I MUST CAPTURE YOU AT ONCE NYEH HEH HEH! YOU WILL BE THOROUGHLY JAPED BY MY PUZZLING ABILITIES!" Papyrus' bellowing voice echoed back once again as Sans struggled to rush up the hill, his insides twisting painfully.

"papyrus! papyrus, stay away from that kid!" Sans yelled out, falling forwards in the snow. It caked on his hoodie, his sleeves, his arms and legs. It was like molasses and heavily weighed down on him. He pushed his arms into the snow, forcing himself to crawl uphill on all fours. The more he moved, the slower he became.

'why is the kid even here right now?!' Sans thoughts were running wild.

"HUMAN, THERE IS NO NEED TO FIGHT! I, PAPYRUS, HAVE PREPARED PLENTY OF PUZZLES FOR YOU TO FIGURE OUT! SHEATH YOUR WEAPON AND WE WILL SPAR WITH OUR MINDS!" his voice sounded less confident but still bellowed loudly through the trees.

'PAPYRUS!" Sans screamed out now, the volume of his voice shocking him through his panic. He was struggling full force now, determined to get to the top of this hill before anything could happen to Papyrus. His body was screaming at him to stop as he over-exerted himself, the only care in his mind focused on his brother.

"H-HUMAN...I BELIEVE IN YOU! THE PATH THAT YOU ARE ON IS DANGEROUS, YOU CAN CHANGE!" his brothers voice was no longer bellowing, but getting fainter as the moments pass.

Sans scrambled to reach the top of the hill, finally able to look down and through the trees. There was nothing but darkness staring back at him. He managed to pull himself to his feet and cupped his hands around his faltering grin.

"PAPYRUS! ANSWER ME!". His voice echoed, trailing off, and then died. It was dead silent. He shuddered as panic gripped him unhinged. He slid down towards the darkness, more trees appearing in his vision the closer he got to them. The wind was blowing snow drifts around him as he clambered forwards. A faint light glimmered in the darkness and Sans made a bee-line for it.

Through the trees a clearing finally became apparent, the light emanating from within it. Sans breaths came out in heaves as he ran as fast as he was able. His body wasn't being weighted down any longer and he sprinted full force, straight into the light. He threw up an arm to shield his eyes and looked around frantically, hoping for a sign of Papyrus.

"paps! can you hear me bro?" Sans called out, stumbling forward once as he waited for his eyes to adjust.

He lowered his arm, allowing his eyes to get used to the bright surroundings. A moment later he realized it was daytime again and the light was reflecting off of pristine snow, causing him some snow blindness. He trudged forwards through the newly fallen snow and came across small footprints.

It felt as if his guts would have wrenched, if he had any. He took off again in the direction of the footprints, his magic thrumming dimly inside. He tugged on his soul again and found he had his powers back. A flare of red caught his eye amidst the white and he saw Papyrus standing face to face with the human child, Papyrus' hands held up in a non threatening gesture.

He watched in dull horror as the child swiped a knife at Papyrus, tearing through his scarf. Papyrus managed to avoid the blow and side-stepped out of harms way. Sans relief was short lived as he saw the kid turn on Paps again.

Sans summoned a few bones and deftly shot them straight at the kid, piercing their side. A howl of pain escaped them as they tumbled forwards in the snow.

Sans skid to a stop next to Papyrus who seemed to be in a state of shock and surprise.

"bro! are you okay?" Sans ran his hands over Papyrus' armor and checked him over. Relief washed over him instantly. 'he's okay.. he didn't die!' he thought to himself and a sigh rattled his bones as the adrenalin left his body.

"I-I AM UNSURE SANS. I FEEL AS THOUGH..." Papyrus' voice seemed fatigued and wavering.

A snicker could be heard coming from the child's crumpled form. Sans turned on them, his left hand coming up from his side and motioning forwards. A line of sharp bones broke through the ground below the child, piercing them upwards and causing them to erupt in a fit of laughter. No blood trickled from their prone form.

"Are you okay, _friend?_ " the kids face raised up and looked at Sans. Their eyes were a black, empty void, the same as their smile. They turned their head at a disturbing angle, twitching unnaturally as they gripped a long red thread in their small hand. They raised their other hand up to grasp the thread as well and tugged slightly with both hands..

Papyrus fell down to his knees in the snow, face blank.

Sans watched, fear gripping him stronger yet as he saw the string was connected to Papyrus's scarf. He rushed to Papyrus's side, grabbing the string and trying to pull it off of his brother.

"I..I FEEL AS THOUGH.." Papyrus' voice sounded empty and hollow, his eyes downcast towards the snow.

"paps! don't worry, you're fine now! big bros gonna handle this.." Sans frantically rips and pulls at the string but it won't seem to break. He stands back, summoning a blaster and aims it desperately. The giggling echoes throughout the clearing.

"So desperate, so tortured, so _pathetic_ , Sans.." the kid begins continuously pulling the string now, Papyrus's scarf unraveling quickly from around his neck.

Sans doesn't understand whats happening. He fires off his blaster, and is horrified to see it has no effect. The string is smoking slightly but is otherwise unharmed. The giggling has increased to manic laughter and the scarf has already almost come undone.

Sans takes the string between his hands again and pulls back on it, a searing pain cutting through his bones. He yelps and withdraws his hands, melted lines in his bones greeting him as he checks his palms. He watches as the last of the scarf un-twines and the kid stops pulling the string. Papyrus' has his back to his brother and has not moved an inch, the red thread somehow tangled in his neck bones and continued down under his armor, out of view.

"BROTHER....WHAT IS HAPPENING? I...I AM.." Papyrus spoke quietly, his voice coming out choked.

Sans rushed forward, turning Papyrus around and gripping him in his arms. He looked up into Papyrus' face, noticing it was now lifeless.

The laughter stopped and Sans looked back to the kid.

"Time to say goodbye, Papyrus...Sans." the kid began pulling again and unparalleled fear and panic coursed through Sans body. Cyan magic flared through his eye as he gripped the kid with magic and slammed them repeatedly into the ground and back down onto the bones, throwing snow in all directions. Small pieces of their body detached but it wasn't enough to truly tear them a part. A carnal roar erupted from Sans as the kid continued to laugh and pull on the string.

"YoUr Not EvEn GoInG tO TRY tO TRY TO ConSoLE yOuRE DyING BROTHER!??!? HE'S COMING APART AT THE _SEAMS!!!_ " the kid barked out through their unending laughter and through Sans raging onslaught.

Sans turned to look at Papyrus and instantly wished he had not, his magic fizzling out due to the shock.

Papyrus' body was slowly unraveling, as if he was solely comprised of that red string. His body twitched and convulsed as he literally began to fall a part. Red liquid began to ooze down the remainder of his body where the string had pulled free, as if a dam had been broken. Sans staggered over, his legs barely following his commands. He fell to his knees and grabbed Paps in a hug. Red fluid began to pour over Sans as his brothers head lulled forwards over his own.

"no..no nononono Papyrus hold on! i can fix this... i won't let you die..i wont..i wont.." Sans stood up and tried again to grab the string and pulled on it once more. The searing pain beneath his palms went ignored as he started a losing game of tug-of-war with the kid.

Papyrus began to quietly laugh.

Sans paled at the sound and found himself shaking as Papyrus began to laugh louder.

"YOU HAVE NEVER ONCE SAVED ME, BROTHER." his voice sounded emotionless and strained, yet he was still laughing.

"i try everytime paps, i try with everything i have!" Sans began to sob as his soul shook from his sorrow. He felt his feet losing traction in the snow, his body being pulled forward with the string.

"IF YOU HADN'T BEEN SO SLOW I WOULD STILL BE ALIVE."

"you ARE alive! you're going to be okay, bro please!" Sans begged as his magic thrummed inside of his chest. His eye began burning cyan again due to his desperation.

"WHY DIDN'T YOU USE A SHORTCUT? AM I SO MUCH OF A BOTHER THAT YOU WANTED TO STAY BEHIND THAT BADLY?"

"PAPS NO! i - i couldn't use my magic! i swear paps! you gotta believe me!" His eye was searing hot, his magic growing stronger and unreigned. Sans had been pulled halfway towards the human at this point, his arms straining uselessly.

"YOU ARE USING YOUR MAGIC FINE NOW BROTHER.." Papyrus stopped laughing as his body fell over, half of it already gone and unraveled. A pool of red began forming around him.

Sans couldn't take it anymore, he released the string and fell forward in the snow, his body convulsing as the magic overwhelmed him. He sobbed out in misery, his brothers words repeating themselves in his mind. Maybe he really hadn't tried hard enough, maybe all this really was his fault. If Papyrus thought so then...

Sans clutched his head, his skull throbbing from the onslaught of magic coalescing inside. He shrieked as his body was engulfed in blue magic, his power flowing out of him haphazardly. He wanted to die. He wanted this to be over.

The kid chortled and stood up from where Sans had left them laying, their body full of gaping holes. They let their hands hang at their sides as they walked to Sans, the string gliding gently behind them. They stopped a mere foot away from Sans. His shuddering, magic covered form curled in on itself in the snow. Blue magic suddenly sputtered forth from Sans jaws, and the kids smile widened.

They knelt down and ran their fingers through the discharged magic.

"Poor poor Sans...always a step behind, huh? What do you say Papyrus, do you forgive him?" the kid smirked as Sans body went still. There was no response.

"You really ought to take one last look at your brother, Sans. It's the _LEAST_ you could do for him..." the kids voice was sickeningly sweet, and they smiled even wider as Sans stirred.

Sans could barely hear what the kid was saying, but he heard his brothers name. Papyrus still needed him, he couldn't just fade away like this. The billowing magic raged against him as he forced his body to move. His arms were burning and it felt like they would crumble beneath him at any moment.

He screamed out and managed to stand himself up, his magic unrelenting and spiteful. He focused his gaze to where his brother was, and found only a pool of red in his sight. Suddenly a red thread was looped over his head and pulled tight around his neck. He reflexively grabbed at it and found he could not pry it free.

"T o o S l o w Y E T A g a i n , S A N S !"

His eyes grew wide with shock as everything suddenly stopped. There was no sound, there was no wind, there was no laughter. His soul writhed and he screamed out in hysterics before he could hear what sounded like the tightening of a wire. It reverberate in his skull and he felt the string slice cleanly through his neck.

* * *

Quiet sobs were all that could be heard in the empty house, moonlight shining through the windows . A faint cyan light gleamed weakly from a shivering mound on the lone bed in the barren room.

"P...Papyrus... _Papyrus_..." a sputtering voice cracked, weak from crying.

"... _where are you?_..." the phrase was repeated like a mantra, the voice strained at the end and sobs began to wrack their body again alone in the encroaching darkness. Their arms folded around their torso, trying to find comfort.

The cyan magic suddenly glowed more intensely as they shook and thrashed in their sleep.

"...no nononono i can....fix this.... won't die....you're okay! _please_ bro..please!... you gotta _believe_ me!" he was screaming now, his eye sockets screwed shut in misery.

"red...so much **red**....it hurts!...it _hurts_!....*gasp*....aaaaaaaaaaaAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!" Sans rolled onto the floor with a loud thud, pulling all of sheets down with him.

His panic'd cries echoed throughout his room as he fought to reorient himself in the darkness.

Gasps slowly gave way to ragged sobs as tears streaked down his face. He sat up, pulling his knees up to his chest and cradled his skull in his arms. His eye slowly dimmed as he allowed himself to be miserable, if only to ride out this flood of emotions.

He isn't sure how much time had passed. Minutes, hours? But he knew he needed to pull himself together once he heard the front door open. Sans heard the familiar sound of keys being dropped into a bowl and Papyrus's heavy boots pounding up the stairs.

"SANS? ARE YOU HOME? UNDYNE AND I HAVE PERFECTED A NEW RECIPE! IT IS CALLED...GOULASH! IT DOES NOT COMPARE TO MY SPAGHETTI, BUT IT WOULD BE PRETTY GOOD ON A TUESDAY, NYEH HEH HEH!" Sans could hear that Papyrus had stopped in the hallway separating their rooms.

Papyrus hesitated but knocked once on his brothers door, and Sans opened it.

"hey bro, sounds like you struck _ghoul_ d with that recipe.." a shit eating grin tugged at the corners of his mouth as Papyrus's eyes bugged out.

"SANS WHY MUST YOU RUIN EVERYTHING WITH PUNS! AND HERE I THOUGHT YOU'D REALLY LIKE IT SINCE IT'S BASICALLY A TOMATO SOUP!" Papyrus stomped his foot indignantly and marched into his own room as Sans snickered to himself.

Papyrus went to slam his door but thought better of it, pushing it closed gently with a "HUMPH".

Once Papyrus was out of sight, the lazy grin he had plastered on slipped a bit as Sans put a hand over his eye sockets. He stood in his doorway for a moment and then closed it behind him as he dragged himself down the stairs. He pulled out his phone and finally checked the time.

1:58am

Sans grabbed his hoodie from the back of the couch and decided he needed to go visit his favorite restaurant and talk to an old friend.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally found a purpose for that nightmare! ✧٩(ˊωˋ*)و✧  
> Was I too heavy handed with the imagery? I figured nightmares are kinda obscure and twisted and dont always make sense so....iuno  
> I also drew up some arts for this! It didn't come out exactly right but ... close enough  
> Did you love it? Hate it? Hate me?
> 
> Tell me in the comments~!
> 
> Edit:: HOLY SHIT I FINALLY HAVE A PLOT IDEA! I hope this is a good idea...


	5. Perspective II

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sans POV part 2/2 
> 
> *Author decides to finish what they started..*
> 
> Honestly, you could probably skip this chapter and you won't miss out on much (maybe an inside joke later). There's some insight on Sans side that you might be interested in, but it really isn't going to affect the story. Normal plot will be returning in the next update.

Sans was having second thoughts as the world shifted around him. He stepped out of his front door and appeared in front of Grillby's. Dark clouds roiled over head in protest, a few especially thunderous claps shaking Sans deep within his bones. He's been living on the surface for years now and lightning still seems to bother him. A glance into the front window told him that Grillby was just about to start closing up for the night. 

Sans stood outside in the rain for a moment, his hands shaking in his pockets as he concentrated on pushing his nightmare out of his mind. His body shivered and he knew it wasn't because of the weather. He ran a hand over his wet skull and contemplated whether or not he wanted to bother his friend with his issues. Hell, Grillbz was already wiping down the tables...

The door opened and a calm bell chimed out as if welcoming him inside. Grillby was standing in the doorway, his flames crackling in surprise. 

"Sans? I thought I saw you standing out here.." Grillby crossed his arms as he used his body to prop open the door. He recognized the strained, unnatural smile that Sans had decorating his features. His flames hissed a bit in the rain as he realized something was up. 

"Lesser.Dog, Doggo, and Greater Dog are still finishing up their poker game if you want to grab a bite?" The offer came across nonchalant as Grillby watched Sans shift his weight from foot to foot. Sans wouldn't make eye contact with him and the silence between them dragged on for a moment.

Sans didn't want to be alone, but now he suddenly felt like retreating. 

_'i can just go back to my room and be alone for a while' he thought to himself. 'it's nothing new, and easier than _this_ '... _

His chest felt tight and his soul stuttered. He couldn't do that to his friend. Grillby always made time to talk to him when he got like this. He didn't even have to speak. Grillby would just standby, ready to talk to him if he _needed_ it, and fuck did that make him grateful. He sighed, he was already here... if he ran off now it would just worry Grillby. 

He could feel that deep well emotions trying to force their way back up, but he pushed them down like he always did. 

For one brief moment, a glimmer of what Sans was feeling must have passed across his features, because Grillby laid a hand on Sans shoulder and ushered him inside.

Sans twitched slightly at the contact but quickly recovered. 

"thanks grillbz..." was all Sans could manage as he dragged himself inside the bar. He took residence on his usual bar stool.

Grillby walked around the counter and stood on the opposite side across from Sans. He reached under the bar top and pulled out a fresh bottle of ketchup, sliding it in front of the sullen skeleton.

As Sans fiddled with the lid on the bottle, Grillby took a rag from off of his shoulder and began to wipe down a line of glasses on the counter.

Time passed comfortably in the bar. The sounds of glasses chinking together from Grillby putting them away, mingled with the raucous laughter of Doggo as he won yet another round of cards. Sans watched his friend wipe down the bar and get things prepared for the morning rush, trying to figure out how to initiate the conversation he wasn't sure he wanted to have..

He decided picking at the ketchup bottle label was a better alternative to talking about his issues.

A glance from Grillby told him that he really was worrying his friend, so he tried to relax a bit. He masked his anxiety with a lazy grin, and took a drink from his ketchup. He was going to avoid the hell out of his problems.

...he wasn't ready to talk about it.

The sounds of chair legs squeaking against the polished floors and barking suddenly broke the calm atmosphere. L.D had pounced on Doggo, trying to paw Doggo's cards out of their hands.

"Wot Wot Wot? I won fair and square! No, I am not cheating!" Doggo had placed their cards face down on the table and was trying to keep L.D from scattering his poker chips. L.D managed to sniff him and started patting Doggo down, searching for extra cards.

"PET? PAT? POT? Are you PETTING me?!" Doggo looked torn between excited and offended. He jumped up onto the table on all fours, out of L.D's reach, sending cards flying in every direction. He darted behind Greater who was very focused on his current hand of cards, his tongue hanging out of the side of his jaws. It looked like he was trying to will the cards in his hand into a full house.

Sans rubbed his skull, a headache forming. L.D. was now in full play mode, chasing Doggo around the table. He really didn't want to break up the guys tonight. Guess the poker game was over. 

Hastily, Doggo darted down the walkway by the bar stools, narrowly avoiding colliding into Sans. Unluckily, L.D was not so graceful, bumping roughly into Sans in his pursuit of Doggo. They both disappeared out of the front entrance, a hurricane of barks and yips as the bell jingled violently.

Sans was knocked forward into the bar, his arm smacking into his ketchup bottle, spilling the red substance all over the front of his hoodie.

His eyes grew wide as images from his dream immediately resurfaced in his mind. Papyrus's lifeless face, red spilling everywhere as he hugged his brothers limp form close. So much _red_..

With a gasp, Sans body jerked away from the spill, panic twisting painfully in his soul. His bar stool wobbled precariously from his abrupt actions but a hand darted out and grabbed Sans arm, steadying him. 

Sans looked up and saw Grillby, staring down at him worriedly. He couldn't put his mask back on in time. All of his fear, panic, sadness, and pain was there for his friend to see.

"Sans.." Grillby started to speak but Sans pulled his arm from his grasp and hopped off of his bar stool.

"i...need to clean up.." Sans didn't have a joke for this... he quickly ducked inside of the bathroom. 

He gripped the sink with both hands, his sockets shut tight, willing his panic to die down. 

His gaze stayed locked on the sink drain, too worried about what expression would greet him if he looked in the mirror.

"it was just a nightmare...get it together" he chastised himself as he took a few breaths to settle his nerves. A few minutes passed and he finally turned his attention back to the mess clinging to him. 

Just touching the sauce would have turned his stomach, if he had one. The last time he felt this sick from ketchup was when the kid first started killing everyone, back when they were all still trapped in the underground. His hand reached reflexively to his chest and he grimaced down at his hoodie, then tugged it off. He wiped as much of the condiment away as he could before placing it under the cool running water. 

He did this for a few minutes, the repetitive scrubbing motion having a calming effect.

A loud bang accompanied with the sound of a rattled bell echoed dully through the bathroom door, successfully pulling him out of his reverie. He could hear voices, a man and a woman's. He could barely make out the words "Steve" and "shithole" from the conversation going on on the other side of the door. The pauses in between words tipped him off that they weren't exactly fully cognitive. Probably drunk.

A third voice was heard that he didn't recognize. Did someone else come in?

Sans fingers clacked against bone as he rubbed his hand against his skull. Why didn't Grillby lock the entrance? He hurried to ring out as much water as he could from his hoodie. 

Sans heard, "YA FUCKING CUNT" get hollered out as he opened the bathroom door.

Maybe six feet away, 2 humans were standing facing each other. One was a short, intoxicated male while the other was an average sized lady. You seemed reluctant to deal with the guy. Sans focused his eyes and checked out their souls.

The man had a dark purple soul that was not shining at all. His atk was 25 and his def was 12. His hp was at 30 and his LV was at 3...

He frowned at the man then looked inside of you but didn't quite understand what he was seeing. Your soul was there, floating inside of your chest but it was...gray. He focused more intensely and finally recognized an underlying color. It was a dim light blue, smothered in a gray light. The surface shined as if it were made of smooth glass. 

Your stats floated lazily above you. 5 hp, 4 atk, 3 def...LV 5..

Sans stared morbidly at your LOVE. Though he was no longer the judge for the Underground, he still harbored a deep hatred towards those with high LV. You must have made some pretty shitty choices in your life, but you're not the worst he's seen, he mused. 

You suddenly dodged backwards, barely avoiding getting socked by the guy. Your soul seemed to waver a bit, the blue beginning to shine through the gray as you watched the man stumble about. 

"Hey dude, chill out! Do you really want to- ACK!" your plea was interrupted as the man slipped and grabbed you around your waist, pulling you both down to the floor. 

Sans watched the blue in your soul die nearly immediately, replaced with a cloying gray fog. His own soul tugged in his chest as he watched your panic rise. He stepped forward as you screamed out obscenities.

"she said to lay off, ' _Steve_ '" Sans reached down and pulled on the back of the mans shirt roughly. The guy thankfully didn't weigh much as Sans tugged him into the air, dangling him above you. Sans found himself focusing on your soul again, relieved to see that murky gray diminishing a bit. 

Now that he was closer, he paid better attention to your features. You looked young but you appeared exhausted, giving the impression that you seemed older than you probably were. Tired circles hung below your eyes but it managed to work on your face. Actually, for a human you were kind of c- Sans killed that thought before it could form.

You sighed and looked up at him.

"Thanks...didn't think it was going to escalate-" you were cut off mid sentence as Steve puked on your chest and onto Sans own shoes. Sans immediately dropped the guy a few feet away.

The look of absolute horror was replaced with utter disgust as you stood up from the floor. Sans watched you stiffly walk into the bathroom and slam the door shut behind you.

Grillby sighed and stepped beside Sans.

"This night just keeps getting worse..." he murmured. Grillby went into the closet next to the bathroom and pulled out a mop.

"ive got it, go finish closing up." 

"You don't have to Sans, I-" 

"grillbz .. "

After a moment, Grillby reluctantly handed the mop to Sans. 

"Thanks.." 

"my tab will get a _clean_ slate for this right?" Sans heard Grillby groan a bit as he walked back to where Greater dog was picking up cards. Sans mood perked up, just a little.

Sans returned the mop to the closet and turned his sights onto the mess sitting in front of him. He immediately used his magic to dump "Steve" outside. Sans gave zero fucks.

He then discreetly teleported all the puke, along with what was on his shoes, to a new location. He didn't have a specific place in mind but he figured it landed somewhere outdoors.

Sans looked around the bar. Grillby had just finished helping Greater pack up his cards, the blonde was still unconscious at the bar, and the sound of running water hadn't stopped since you stepped into the bathroom.

He sighed, his mind trying to wander back to darker musings. With his chore done, Sans stepped outside and leaned against the building, the rain now a slow drizzle.

He should go home.. No, he should've just locked himself up in his room to begin with. If he hadn't come here, maybe Grillby would have closed on time. He couldn't help but think of what could have happened. Drunken humans wouldn't have wandered into the bar and caused such an ordeal. He didn't know you, but you probably wouldn't have been puked on if he hadn't decided to impose on Grillby. He allowed his mind to twist everything into a sickening guilt trip. His hands clenched in his hoodie pockets as he scowled down at the ground. Everything was his fault.. He ran a hand over his face and slumped against the outside wall.

A few minutes later a cab pulled up in front of the bar, but it wasn't slowing to a stop. The driver looked like he was about ready to tear off again as he laid eyes on Sans. Sans wondered what had the driver glaring daggers at him and suddenly remembered the unconscious human laying nearby. He felt his soul lurch as he realized the implications. A pissed off looking monster standing next to an unconscious human. The first story on the news in the morning would be "Man Assaulted by Monster Outside of a Local Monster Owned Business." 

"whoa! h-hey pal! this guy started some trouble and passed out. ya here to pick him up?" he took his hands out of his pockets and waved to the guy, receiving no response. Sweat was forming on Sans skull as Grillby stepped outside with the blonde woman. He was half carrying her as he made his way down the steps. Thank the king..

"Thanks for stopping by Charlie, this is the couple I was talking about.." Grillby walked up to the cab window and peered inside, giving Sans a chance to slip back inside. He rubbed his skull and noticed you had come out of the bathroom. Your head was down on the counter and your soul was as gray as ever.

He debated whether he wanted to interact with you until he noticed your soul again. He watched the light blue shine out among the gray, swirling the two colors together. It reminded him faintly of a painting he had seen before. The blue began to be overtaken and dulled once more. 

Your body stirred, but only enough for you to reach your hands up and cradle them around your head. 

He smiled bitterly to himself as he recognized that body language.

 _Steve_ must have finally been awakened and put into the cab cause all Sans could hear now were a slew of obscenities. The cab started driving away causing Steve's voice to become but a faint screech now.

Sans shrugged mentally and walked over to your right and sat at the bar stool.

"heh... you look retch'ed. guess that's one way to end a dis'puke"

You groaned and kept your head down on the counter. You didn't speak up right away and Sans considered that you might ignore him.

"Ha. ha. ha. you are just hilarious mr bones.." you lift your head long enough to drink some of the water Grillby had set out, then return to hiding your face on the counter. 

At least it was a response. Sans tried to keep the conversation going. He could tell you were miserable, and so was he. He didn't want to admit it but he felt like you were a comrade in depressed warfare. Birds of a feather and all that jazz...

"nah that's my old mans title, call me sans. sans the skeleton."

"Sans? Like the font?" this made you give him some of your attention. Sans blipped into the void and reappeared into the seat directly on your left as you raised your head. You examined the empty bar stool to your right and without missing a beat you immediately turned your head to the left, pushing your cheek directly into his waiting finger. A small smile passed by your lips as you swatted at him and he grinned.

"yeah, its a family thing." he shrugged and leaned back on the counter. He watched you, or rather looked through you, curiosity crinkling around his eye sockets. The blue was returning to your soul, and Sans thought that maybe it was shining brighter now. 

"so what are you doin' at a bar at 2 am?" Sans roused you out of your mental reverie.

"Same to you..."

"i asked first."

"And I asked second, should we keep stating the obvious?" you took another swig of your water and stared at him.

The skin beneath your eyes was dark, but the look in your eyes was bright, and patient. They seemed as if they were perceptive, like one glance could tell you more about others than anything else. You reminded him of someone.

He chuckled a bit at your sass. You seemed to be warming up to his company. He considered what answer he could give to your question.... 

_'i dreamt about my brother turnin' into a puddle of horrifyin' goop and a kid cuttin' my head off, so i came here to unload my problems onto my friend but then decided to just bottle up my issues, y'know, like a normal person.'_ he got pissed at himself and decided to reword it in his head. 

"i have a _tendon_ -cy to not sleep. so i stopped by my pals for a bite." he gave a half wave to Grillby as he went about wiping down empty tables.

"Yeah, you look _dead_ tired" you smirked a bit, and Sans was pretty surprised that you made a joke. It was in poor taste, but it's not like you knew what was going through his fucked up head. 

"hey, speaking ill of the dead is a _grave_ mistake" he winked and grabbed a bottle of ketchup. He was still feeling unsettled but, he got a kick out of watching the responses people had when he drank ketchup.

She couldn't keep her eyes off of him as he took a large gulp of the condiment. He could see the gray on her soul lighten up further as he finished his swig and placed the bottle on the table.

She whistled low as she sat up straighter and faced him, her one arm propped on the bar still, chin in her hand.

"You trying to impress me? Just how much do you like ketchup?" 

He grinned to himself as the perfect joke was set up for him..

"i love it...from my head 'to ma toes'.." he waited patiently as he scanned your face for a reaction.

It took you a moment, he noticed, to pick up on the wordplay but once you did, you were so animated. Your eyes widened, in understanding or anger, he wasn't certain.. An amusing look of disbelief passed across your face and then just the biggest smile broke across your features. You looked even better when you smiled, he noted. Surprisingly, you had a very boisterous laugh. It was unbridled and unashamed. Loud, but not unpleasantly so. It was like music to his non existent ears. 

What really got him though, was how your soul was reacting.

It was if a cleansing wind blew through it and ushered the gray clouds away. The light blue was a radiant, clear sky on a beautiful summer day, living inside of you. Your soul glimmered and pulsed happily, like you were another person entirely.

"GAWD that was...." you laughed hard and covered your mouth to stifle yourself a bit, your face beginning to turn slightly red. Actual tears were forming in the corners of your crinkled eyes and Sans began laughing at your reaction.

 

And the rest is history.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I feel like i did a pretty bad job on this chapter, like maybe it didn't need written so now I feel like im wasting everyones time, and my own UGHHH. IUNO but here it is. 
> 
> Also forgive me, I love commas and I probably use them way too much! orz
> 
> Hopefully I wont feel the need to write a Sans POV chapter for a while...
> 
> If you liked this insight, please let me know!
> 
>  
> 
> Comments appreciated!


	6. Friends

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Where Reader realizes Sans has poor taste with cellphone sounds.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the short chapter, had some trouble figuring out what I wanted to put in here or not..  
> Things will be picking up soon I guess? Gosh, I think I need to work on my timing...
> 
> ANYWAYS! here ya go.

Eating breakfast always fucked you up. You rubbed your face, exhaustion creeping into your bones against your will. 

_'Thanks body, for wanting to sleep _now_ , great fucking idea._' you thought irritably as you straightened up, popping your back as you walked towards your next destination.

You failed to notice Sans visible twitch as your back did a great impression of a hot bag of popcorn in a microwave. Sweat was beading on his skull as you turned towards him. 

"So you said you work at a University near here?" you wondered how skeletons could even sweat. 

Over breakfast you both had gotten onto the subject of what he did for a living. He had mentioned that in the underground he had studied quantum physics and that his father worked under the king. You were impressed but he blew it all off as if it wasn't a big deal at all. 

"yeah, it's about 45 minutes south of here. friend a mine works there and put in a good word..." Sans had ordered 2 more bottles of the fancy ketchup and was already half way done with one of the jars as you two walked. He took a particularly large swig and half of it missed his mouth, splotching up his _already_ stained hoodie. He groaned loudly and you snickered.

"Geez, Sans...and I thought I was a slob.." you teased him elbowing him gently as he scowled down at his hoodie.

"ya dunno know the half of it, sweetheart" he drawled but stopped as he saw your face blush slightly. He realized what he had said and quickly backpedaled.

"uhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh" smooth.

"It's been a long time since anyone's called me anything other than "lazyass" or ..." you brushed off the cute name, blush pretty much gone by now as a few sour thoughts threatened to plague your mind. Sans seemed to notice your drop in mood, his eye lights looking through you again, like they had earlier that morning. You wondered what that was about as he refocused on your face.

"sorry, that title's already been taken. i get called that a skele _ton_ by my bro. he's right though" Sans had wiped most of the ketchup off of his hoodie by now, but it looked like it might be getting stuck in between his bones.

You both turned a corner and saw that the side street was blocked off with yellow caution tape. A few police officers were milling about and you noticed a car smashed into a telephone pole. The whole front end was dented inwards and the front window was spiderwebbed. It looked like there was some sort of slime on the front windshield. 

A man was rummaging through the driver's side when a police officer started talking to him.

"Sir, could you please explain what happened this morning again." the officer was questioning the guy.

"For the _last_ time, I don't KNOW what happened!" he threw his hands up in the air in frustration as the police officer stepped back. 

"I was just driving through here around 2:30am when suddenly this vomit fell onto my windshield! I couldn't see and swerved into that pole. I'm telling you someone has it out for me!" he ran his hand through his hair and his shoulders slumped.

You felt for the poor guy. Guess you weren't the only one that had a horrible time last night. Sans was ushering you forward then, the lights in his eyes gone. 

"guess we can't go this way, heh. let's make like a banana n' split.." his smile looked a little forced but you agreed and you both moved on to the next street. 

Sans seemed kinda worried about something. You were about to ask what was up when a dramatic fart sounded from nearby and took you off guard. You looked for the source and saw Sans pull a cellphone from out of his pockets. You made a face as you realized that was his phone making that noise.

"Wow, real mature Sans. I can't believe that's your ringtone." you watched as he read something and put his phone away.

"nah, that'd be infantile. it's my notification sound, much classier" he laughed as you gave him a skeptical look. "looks like i need to head home tho. my bro needs me" he shoved his hands into his pockets and grinned up at you.

"Alright, thanks again for-" Sans held up a hand to stop you.

"you've been thankin me an awful lot, keep it up and it'll go to my _skull_ " he winked as you rolled your eyes, but you smiled at him.

"Well, it was cool hanging out with you n junk. See ya around?" You felt a hopeful tug in your chest as you noncommittally said the last part. All it took was talking to this goofy skeleton and you felt more like yourself than you had in a while. He was so easy to get along with. You wondered if this was just your loneliness manifesting a hopeful feeling.

"sure thing pal, if im not crossing any _bone_ dries i can give you my number, if you want.." Sans shrugged and looked at you, waiting for a response.

You'd be lying to yourself if you said you weren't thrilled as soon as he offered. Your soul stuttered in your chest as you whooped in your head. This making friends shit doesn't usually go this well for you. You willed yourself to chill out and acted cool.

"Yeah, sure! Uh sounds chill...er cool." you nearly fumbled and dropped your phone as you pulled it out of your pocket. You watched Sans chuckle and felt your face get warmer. Damn it...

Sans took your phone from you and after a few swipes and taps, he handed it back. You looked at the entry he typed and smirked. 

"vertebruh" xxx-xxx-xxxx

"Geez, youre such a _numbskull_.." you put a hand over your eyes in mock embarrassment.

"what? don't find it _humerous_?"

"Omg Sans.." you began snickering at the puns piling up.

"but youre smiling" he turned and started to walk away "welp, see ya later".

As you lowered your hand from your eyes you realized he was gone. You looked up and down the street but he was no where in sight. You huffed a little dejectedly. You had never seen someone run off so quickly...maybe he was just being nice and tolerating you..  
You shook your head and looked back down at your phone. The contact still hadn't been saved, so you pushed the little check mark accept button. 

Oh...he didn't ask for your number. You wondered if it was too soon to text back but figured it'd be even weirder to text later, so you punched in a quick message.

xxx-xxx-xxxx - "Hey, it's ____"

Satisfied, you turned off the screen and started walking again as you pocketed your phone. It was after 8:00am and even though you still had about 2 hours before your first class, you decided to might as well head to your college. It was a good 30 minute walk from where your apartment was, 45 if you dragged your feet. 

You popped in some headphones and zoned out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments always appreciated, they give me life! Tell me if this is too boring or just not good...kay?
> 
> I tend to second guess myself a lot (ó﹏ò｡)


	7. School Daze

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Where Reader wishes she wasn't a messy coder.
> 
> Sorry for the short chapter, more story to come soon though!

The climb up the hill that housed your college was always a chore. Every time you walked to school you made a promise to yourself to work out and get in shape, but deep down you knew it was a damn dirty lie. As you reached the top you had to stop for a moment and rest with your hands on your knees while other students were passing by you unfazed by the incline. Even though you were already over-heated, you could feel your face grow hotter with embarrassment and you finally stood up straight. You pretended you weren't breathing hard as you started walking again.

As you moved towards the double doors that lead to the lobby, a flier's headline immediately caught your eye. The design was a light blue and pink cotton candy colored cloud theme with cartoony stars floating in the sky. The font was a decorative curly type and white in color.

  


Ever Wonder What Your Dreams Really Mean, Or Why You Dream?

I am conducting a sleep study to figure out the complexities of dreams and their capabilities. 

Please stop by auditorium #5 to visit my seminar between 4:45pm and 6:00pm!

\- Dr.Alphys  
  


"Dr. Alphys?..why have I heard that name before?" you shrug mentally and tear down the flier, fully intending to check out the event. You tuck it safely away in your pocket as you head to your first class.

Your day dragged on slowly, with your mood devolving from awake and upbeat to irritable and tired as you progressed from class to class. You miserably accepted that your bad mood is solely your own fault due to lack of sleep. You also didn't bring your bag to school today and you were kicking yourself for it. You usually didn't need your class books for _anything_ but, of course, today the professor wanted to work out of a specific chapter. He was infamous for going on spiels about responsibility and professionalism when a student was late, disruptive, or in your case, forgot their books, but luckily, you have a friend in this class to save you.

Her name was Emi Tembold and she was a short, cute red headed girl with hazel eyes and a long ponytail that she liked to hang over her shoulder. If you had to describe her personality it was, sunny. She was definitely a girly girl, and popular with a lot of the guys around your college thanks to her winning smile and *cough* wardrobe choice. You sort of envied how she had all the right curves in all the right places. She wasn't just eye candy though. She was smart and her upbeat attitude often times rubbed off on you, so you were glad when you two got on good terms quickly.

You cringed as the teacher prepared to drone out his possibly memorized and rehearsed speech to you, when Emi spoke up.

"Mr. Roberts, my computer doesn't seem to be turning on, can you come help me? Pleeeaaassseeeee!" 

His tall, lanky frame seemed to sag a bit as he let out the breath he was preparing. He glanced at her with one eyebrow raised, and made his way over. 

He wasn't an old guy, maybe in his 40's, but he had a stuffiness to him as if he were much older. His hair was shaggy and roughly styled away from his eyes. A pair of fat, square glasses sat on his prominent nose and settled at the tip of it. He had a long face, and an almost permanently bored expression. Contrary to belief though, he was sometimes very animated. When we got onto creating our own characters for one of the coding projects, he really perked up. He let it slip that he had once voice acted for a video game character his friend designed and the whole class bombarded him with questions the rest of the period. After that he seemed to be more laid back and less "all business". But that didn't stop him from lecturing us every chance he got...

"Miss Tembold, we are 5 weeks into this class. Surely by now.." He tended to speak slowly and draw out his words in silky, sarcastic undertones. He had meandered over to behind Emi's seat and leaned forward a bit. "you would have figured out the finer mechanics of the _power_ button?". With a quick tap he turned on Emi's computer screen. While he was distracted, Emi scooted her book between us and I glided closer to her seat.

Mr. Roberts stood up straight and adjusted his glasses. He noticed the book between us and turned his back, his long legs easily striding him to the front of the class. He pulled out a dry erase marker and turned to the board. He was about to start writing when he said, "You can't always rely on Emi to save you miss (y/n)."

You bristled as he called you out. A few students chuckled as Emi gave you an apologetic shrug. 

The rest of the class finished uneventfully. He had given you two assignments to finish before your next class, pointedly reminding _you_ personally of the due date. You sighed and hunched your shoulders as you walked down the hall with Emi.

"Cheer up, (y/n)! The assignments this week are really easy. You'll get em done in a snap!" she snapped her fingers to provide emphasis but you weren't so easily convinced.

"Easy for you to say, you have like a perfect score in this class..." you shoved your hands in your pocket and pulled out the flier. "I wish there was something I could do as easily..".

"*pffft* What are you talking about?! You have a B in this class! Nearly an A, right?" Emi threw her arms out exasperatedly as you both stepped into the elevator.

"Yeah, yeah...still isn't good enough though. How am I supposed to make a career out of this if I am not at _least_ doing grade A work by now?" you pressed the #1 button and leaned on the wall at the back of the elevator as you moped.

"You lose a lot of points for messiness, you know." Emi wasn't having any of your shit and had her arms crossed with a look on her face that reminded you eerily of Mr. Roberts.

Ugh no, you really didn't wanna hear her criticize your work, even if she was a good friend. Sometimes you whined just to vent, but Emi never seemed to see it that way.

"You'd probably have a better grade than me if you concentrated on fixing the little mistakes and cleaning up your code. You'd-"

"More effort, be more responsible. Got it. Emi! Did you want to come with me to this seminar?" you pointed at the flier as you held it up for her to see.

She huffed as you blew her off but leaned forward to examine the loose page.

"Oh I saw this hanging in the cafe... It does seem like something right up your alley, (y/n)."

"Right?? So you wanna come? It's starting in like 10 minutes." the elevator dinged and you both stepped off onto the main floor of the building. You subtly put your arm over her shoulders and started leading her towards the auditoriums.

"Think of it as...conducting research! Weren't you looking for a topic for your English paper? You might get inspired~!" you gently shook her as you tried to tempt her with your sing song voice. 

Emi smirked and pushed your arm off of her. "Alright! Alright! I'll come check it out, for your sake. It does sound sort of interesting, I suppose."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally getting somewhere! Now boarding, all riders please have your tickets ready before hand!
> 
> Comments are always appreciated ! <3


	8. Dark Fears

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Where Reader joins a new project.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for not updating sooner!  
> I've been out of town since monday and im going out of town again today!  
> After this break hopefully ill be posting at a more "normal" rate...  
> ര ‿ ര hopefully...
> 
> ((I might rewrite this chapter later, im not that happy with it..))
> 
> Thanks for reading!  
> comments always appreciated <3

Auditorium #5 was a buzz with noisy chatter by the time you and Emi stepped through the large oak doors. There were a decent amount of students attending, they speckled the auditorium in little groups, with a few solo attendees sitting in random spots. In the front row there sat 2 professional looking men and an old stoic woman. The woman looked entirely unimpressed and bored with her small rounded glasses pushed as far up her nose as possible, her hair in a tight blonde bun and a frown carving itself deeply into her face. She scowled up at what appeared to be a blue fish lady with dazzling red hair and an eye-patch as she shuffled papers on a podium. 

The red head was wearing a stylish gray pants suit and wore her hair in a long sleek ponytail. Though she looked professional, she seemed as if she were uncomfortable in her own skin up there. Under the suit you could see defined muscles and trace amounts of sweat was glistening on the scales of her face as she stood under the hot lights on the stage.

You found yourself staring at the blue fish monster, unaware of what you were doing until she made eye contact with you. You took a sharp intake of breath as she gave you a slightly dirty look and walked off of the stage. 

'What's her problem? I mean it was rude of me to stare but..' you were in such a good mood til now. "Fucking great, I hope she isn't the presenter... _she looks like some muscle headed idiot anyways.."_. Your head started to pound as that last thought hit you. Ugh, why are you so damn negative all the time?! You sighed and ran a hand through your hair.

"(y/n)?" Emi motioned for you to hurry up.

"Huh? Ah I'm coming Emi, just spacing out..." You realized Emi was waiting for you so you turned and followed her up the side stairs that were besides the ascending row of seats.The two of you made your way to the back of the auditorium and sat a few rows behind another group that had the same idea. From this spot you could see all of the other seats sloping downwards towards a stage with a podium, sitting at the center of the room.

"What was that about? Do you know her?" Emi folded her arms over the headrest of the seat in front of her as she scanned the room for familiar faces.

"Nah..I probably pissed her off cause I was gawking at her.. I didn't mean to .." you slumped in your chair and crossed your arms, your feet tapping impatiently. 

Emi reclined back in her seat, a considerate look on her face. "Seems like more is bothering you than that..What's up?"

Your lips pursed into a straight line as you recalled your previous train of thought. "Just sick of intrusive thoughts n' shit Emi. Do you ever get those?".

"Intrusive thoughts..? I think I know what you mean. It's like when you see a hot guy and the thought _"I'd fuck him"_ pops into your head without thinking about it!" she had a finger tapping on her chin and a serious look on her face as she gazed downwards. You followed her line of sight and saw a guy she'd been crushing on recently, sitting with the group a few rows ahead of you.

"Pffft Emi! Be serious!" you laughed and pushed her sideways, her serious expression vanishing below a rush of giggles and grins.

"Ok ok, but isn't it like the same thing?" Emis laughter had subsided to mild chuckling as she sat facing you.

"Well.." your mood sobered up as you thought about how to explain it to her. "You're right, I think..but my thoughts aren't like that. They're not what I'd usuall-"

"WELCOME TO DOCTOR ALPHYS' SEMINAR ON DREAMS, PUNKS!" a booming voice cut you off mid sentence and the lights dimmed as the blue fish woman returned to the stage. You had to cover your ears as the microphone screeched in distress at the monsters loud volume. The blue monster placed a hand over the mic and grimaced, letting the sound fade away before continuing.

"Sorry about that.....I'm Undyne and I'm gonna to be standin' in for Alphys today but she'll be available afterwards for questions, so you better all stick around, got it?!" She slammed her fist on the podium hard enough to rattle the mic, but luckily it didn't fall down. You glanced sideways at Emi who had a slightly perturbed expression on her face. You grinned at her and shrugged before turning your attention back to the stage.

Your mood perked up considerably once the presentation began. Surprisingly, you didn't mind that the blue woman was the presenter anymore, too interested in what she had to say, over your previous first impression. 

"Today we'll be talkin' about..." Undyne picked up the stack of papers and brought them closer to her face, squinting down at the text in front of her. "The _Activation-Synthesis Hypothesis_ , _The Threat Simulation Theory_ , and we'll have a discussion about if dreams are merely electrical brain impulses or if through technological advancement could we develop new ways to enhance magical psychic abilities in humans such as premonitions, mind reading, astral projecting, or time travel...." 

She set the papers back down and rubbed her eyes "Could you make that sentence any longer Alphys? Is the whole thing gonna be like this?!" she was facing towards stage left, whisper yelling at someone you couldn't see. Some quiet whispering could be heard answering the monsters questions. You could have sworn you saw a flash of yellow in the shadows. The fins on the side of Undynes head drooped as an apologetic look crossed her face. 

A loud cough from the front row brought Undyne back to attention. As she looked at the owner of the sound her lip curled up in a sneer, revealing many sharp teeth. Your gaze widened as you wondered how many teeth she possibly had. 

Undyne composed herself and carried on. She seemed somewhat animated at first as she spieled out a long lecture on human brain waves and how your brain creates a dream, but she seemed to be losing patience as she breached the subject of how humans use their dreams to recreate dangerous scenarios for survival. At one point the older blonde woman stood and began to leave, scurrying out of the room quickly as Undyne focused her glare on her. Some students followed after her shortly after.

"Many theories have been created over the years tryin' to pick a part and decipher the nature and true meanin' behind human dreams, but strong evidence has remained elusive. That is where Dr. Alphys comes in. She is currently lookin' for volunteers to participate in her dream study. She and her team will be delving into the human psyche and monitorin' the patterns of dreams, sleep cycles, and REM sleep with the use of magic and technology. If you are interested, stay here and she will be out shortly to discuss the details further." Undynes shoulder drooped as she finished the lecture, her face slightly blushing. She looked extremely over heated as she exited the stage.

You stretch and nudge Emi who had passed out halfway through the seminar. Quite a few other students had already left but about 12 people were still in the auditorium including yourself and Emi.

"Is it over?" Emi's head drooped forward as she rubbed her face. "That was the longest 45 minutes of my life (y/n).."

"Dude, you missed out on the best parts! I'm staying after to meet up with the doctor....you have a little.." you motioned next to your own mouth as Emi's eyes widened. She quickly ran her hand over her face and wiped away some drool. You laughed as she quickly got up from her seat and made her way to the stairs. 

"This has been _fun_ but I gotta get cleaned up.. that cute guy from earlier asked me out!" Emi winked and started down the stairs two at a time.

"How the hell did you pull that off?" You scrambled to catch up with her but she was already at the bottom.

"Texting! Try it sometime nerd!" before you could say anything else she waved and disappeared through the double doors.

You wanted to talk about the seminar some more but you figured you'll get the chance to do that with the doc. You made your way back towards the stage and headed to a group that had already formed in front of a table. You didn't recognize any of the other students there, probably from different departments than yours. You managed to snag a paper from a pile.It looked like an average form that asked for your name, phone number, the college you attended, the date, and your address. 

What wasn't average was the large amount of space that asked you to specify what kind of dreams you have, if you have difficulty sleeping, if you suffer from mental illness...blah blah blah. You took a pen from a cup and made your way to the first row of seats, then began filling out your paper. 

"H-hello! T-thank you f-for a-a-ttending my s-s-eminar! Have a-all of you r-received a c-c-ontact form?" a small yellow dinosaur-like girl stepped off of the stage and walked towards the small group. A murmur of acknowledgement and agreement flowed from the group as Dr. Alphys sat behind the table. 

"G-good! I-if any of y-you have any q-q-uestions, please f-feel free to a-ask now!" 

"Does filling out this form mean that we are volunteering for this project?" a guys voice emanated from somewhere in the group. Alphys looked at someone you couldn't see and smiled.

"Y-yes! This i-is an application! I-if you aren't i-interested in p-participating then you do n-n-ot need to t-turn one in!" 

"What is this sleep study? Is it like an experiment?" another voice, this time female, rang out.

"A s-sleep study is a p-private, overnight e-examination. D-during the e-examination, me and my group of assistants will m-monitor your b-brain and body to see what is h-happening inside your m-mind. I have a l-lab prepared for overnight s-stays that is s-safe and secure! It i-is a-an e-experiment b-but n-nothing u-unatural w-will be o-occuring!" she had begun fiddling with her thumbs as she stared at the table.

"Will the students be paid for their time?" One of the professional men you saw in the front row earlier had walked to the front of the group and was looming over the table. You could see Alphys visible shrink under his gaze and sweat form on her scales.

"Uuhm.. w-we would l-like to pay t-them for their participation but a-as of now w-we do n-not have the f-funding to p-promise any stipends..." her voice trailed off as she refused to make eye contact with anyone.

"This sounds sketchy, I'm out of here..." one of the boys began to leave, causing a domino effect. Alphys sat up in her chair, a defeated look gradually making it's way across her face as she watched a few other students follow the guy out.

"Sounds like fun, I'm in!" you walked over to the table and placed your completed paper on the table in front of Alphys, 

"Uh, just a heads up before you read my application, my dreams are kind of awful...". Alphys looked up at you and for a moment you thought you saw stars in her eyes.

"T-THANK Y-YOU!" she grabbed your hands and begun shaking them. "T-that's f-fine by t-the w-way! A-all types of d-dreams are v-valid and u-useful data!". She released you and sat back down as a few other students placed their applications on the table as well. Soon she was becoming over whelmed with questions from the small enthusiastic group that had decided to join her project.

You gave her a small wave as you ducked out and headed back home. It was about 7:15pm when you finally got home and collapsed on your couch.

\--

You could hear muffled laughter coming from outside of your bedroom door. You rubbed your eyes, trying to free them from their sleep. It was dark in your room, pitch black except for the light spilling in from beneath your door. You could feel your heart race as you quickly shuffled in the darkness to your bedroom door and reach up to turn the large handle. 

The tv in the living room was blaring loud but it seemed like it was just static playing on the screen. The lights in the living room were dim and a strong smell of cigarettes clogged your nose, though you were used to it.

"Mummy? I can't sleep...my rooms too dark!" you whined as you tugged on the blanket hanging off of the old, musty couch. You could hear a groan as you tugged again.

"Mummmmm! Mummy!" 

"Can't you shut her up?" a mans voice murmured from under the covers. An irritated sound answered him and that was soon followed by your mom pulling herself partially free from the covers.

"Go back to bed, you're too old to be scared of the dark!" her green eyes were clouded and her hair was a mess. She wasn't wearing anything as she leaned over to the table and pulled a cigarette from out of a pack and lit it. She took a long drag and blew it down in your direction carelessly.

"B-but..my nightlight..." your eyes began to tear up as you thought about going back into the darkness.

"I threw it out! You won't ever grow up if you keep acting like a baby.." she was suddenly squirming as something underneath the blanket was happening that you couldn't see. "Roobbb, stop!" she giggled and her head vanished under the covers again.

You started to sniffle, little sobs escaping you.

"Go back to bed (y/n) or I'LL _GIVE_ YOU SOMETHING TO CRY ABOUT!" she snapped at you from under the covers and you recoiled, fresh tears streaming down your face. You reluctantly left the living room and stood outside of your doorway, peering into the dark.

You started to hear that static sound louder as you took a step forwards. You covered your chest with your hands and clutched the fabric of your night gown as you went further in. 

You murmured to yourself as you got close enough to your bed to crawl up. "I'm not scared, I'm not scared, only babies are scared of the dark! I'm a big girl...I'm..." 

Your door shut itself abruptly, the light from the living room fading away. You gasped out in fear and buried yourself under your covers. "I-im n-not scared! I'm not-!" you started to sob softly as you curled up. The static in the room grew louder as you bunched your gown in your hands again, clutching it to your chest. A small light began to illuminate from somewhere nearby. You opened your eyes and un-bunched your hands, seeing that it was coming from inside of you. You placed a hand over the light in your chest and gently pulled your hand away, tugging out a small heart with it.

Your eyes lit up as it shined a bright light blue, cascading shimmering light on the covers you were beneath. You felt calm and peaceful as you held the small heart close to your chest. You emerged from under the covers and allowed the light to brighten your dark room. You smiled as you laid down, your new night light bobbing on your palm as you allowed yourself to relax. The shadows in the room shifted and avoided the light but it wasn't scary to you anymore. 

As you drifted off, the static became louder and more apparent. You shifted in bed and opened your eyes, unable to drift off due to the overwhelming noise. 

Your little shining heart was somehow on the floor. Panic rose inside of you as you scrambled over the side of the bed towards it. As you touched the floor, the shadows that lurked beneath your bed coiled around your legs. 

"MOMMY! MOMMMYYY! PLEASE! _PLEASE_ MUMMY!" you screamed and kicked your legs, trying to free yourself. The dark shadows of the room began closing in around you. You tried to crawl to the light, your hands clawing at your carpet, but it was no use. You watched as the shadows got closer to your heart, inch by inch. The darkness was wispy, and looked almost like the smoke that trailed off of your mothers cigarettes. It began to slither and coil along the surface of the small blue heart. Licking it gently, almost lovingly.

Your chest began to ache painfully as you watched the darkness caress your heart. You couldn't tell if it was in reality or in your mind but you heard a fain cracking sound. You cried out and began sobbing as your little bright blue heart that was so pretty and calming, started to have swirls of black overtake the inside through a small crevice that wasn't there before. You felt like you couldn't breathe, your body was shaking as your little blue heart twitched rapidly on the floor. Your room was growing much darker than it had been before. You felt yourself being pulled now, back underneath your bed. The darkness had already consumed your legs, past your hips, and almost all of your torso. Your arms and head were all that remained in the faintly fading light.

You were so tired of struggling, you tried again to reach your heart but it was gone, and it left behind nothing but darkness. You were pulled under then, the static becoming the only thing you could hear in your mind. Smothering you entirely until you gave in. It thundered inside of your head unbearably so. It began to intensify, threatening to rip your skull a part if it became any louder and soon you found yourself screaming with it.

You awoke calmly on your couch, the sound of screaming fading from your conscious mind. You sat up in the dark, your eyes slightly watering as you grabbed your phone to check the time. 8:28pm.

Your shoulders slumped forward as you recalled bits and pieces of your dream. You gently laid a hand on your chest and pressed it there. There was no light shining from beneath your shirt, but you took a deep breath. With a shaky hand you pulled it away and into your hand drifted your gray, murky heart. Your eyes finally did tear up upon seeing it and small droplets hit the surface before phasing through it. You stroked a thumb over your heart, watching the light blue peek out momentarily before being washed out with gray.

You laid down again, with your heart still in your palm and drifted back to sleep.


	9. Fun and Games

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Where Reader shows off her game collection.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry for my absence! I was out of town, and visiting family and all sorts of other fun(stressful) activities...and when I got back my mind wasn't in the right place to write. I kinda hated how the last chapter read but I think i'll leave it be. Anyways though, I finally got my inspiration back and hopefully ill be able to pump out more chapters soon! 
> 
> Thanks for reading and being patient with me...the story is coming along I think...
> 
> Comments are appreciated! <3 have a loverly day

"So much for sleeping..."

You have a horribly difficult time trying to fall back to sleep. Honestly, you knew you wouldn't be able to after you awoke the first time, but you hoped maybe just laying here would end with you passed out. It didn't though. You sat up and remembered you had pulled out your murky heart. You stroked it gently against your palm before pressing it back into your chest, then grabbed your cellphone from off the nearby table.

It was 9pm and you had no missed calls or messages, as usual, so you lazily browsed random apps on your phone. Aside from sleeping, there was nothing else for you to really do...except homework. You groaned as Mr. Roberts passive-aggressive warning flickered through your mind. It was due tomorrow morning.. you still had time though. Your inner procrastinator assured you that you have all night to get it done.

Your thoughts drifted to that seminar from this afternoon and you dug in your back pocket and removed the flier. You glanced over it one more time and tossed it on the table. You never set up a date to talk to Alphys again... she'll call you if you're accepted you figure.

Your thoughts were interrupted by your stomachs loud protests. Right, eating. That's a thing people do more than once a day. 

With your blanket pulled around you like a make-shift cocoon, you grumbled and trotted into your kitchen and peeked in the cupboards. Lots of canned vegetables and soups lined the shelves along with a ton of spices. You grabbed a can of chicken noodle down and checked the expiration date, then promptly tossed it in the trash. A couple cans later and you planned to go grocery shopping soon.

You knew there was nothing in your fridge but you checked anyways. It was totally barren besides a few old take out containers and some cheese sticks. You closed your fridge, but not before nabbing a cheese stick, and headed towards your bedroom.

With cheesy goodness dangling from your lips, you plopped on your bed and pulled out your laptop. Were you in the mood for Chinese? A hoagie? Italian? Pizza...? A few quick taps later and you had pulled up the website of a local pizza place. You noticed they were closing at 9:30 tonight and hoped they'd still take your order. You quickly dialed up the number in your phone and prayed that they'd answer. A deep voice picked up that sounded like they had said this line one too many times tonight.

"tony's pizza, sorry were closin' for the night." 

You felt your chest deflate a little with disappointment.

"Damn, sorry for calling so late...thanks!"

There was a pause on the line and you thought maybe they had hung up. You were about to end the call when they spoke again.

"(y/n)?"

You thought you maybe misheard them and looked at your phone skeptically before answering "Yeaaaah? Who is this?".. There were probably a lot of girls in this town with your name..

"ill give you one guess _barf_ ore i hang up on you." you heard a familiar snicker in the voice. Recognition hit you suddenly and you wondered why you didn't realize it sooner.

"Oh my god, Sans?! I didn't know you worked at a pizza place!" you were wide awake now, an eager emotion bubbling up against your will. 

"i work a few odd jobs here and there, _spices_ up my life a bit. free pizza is a plus." you could hear someone in the background calling out to someone, and the sounds on the receiver became muffled for a moment. A scraping sound emanated from the receiver followed by Sans voice returning.

"sorry to cut this short but i gotta get back to cleanin' up.."

"Alright, don't work yourself to the _bone_ " Your joke earned you a chuckle from the other side of the line, followed by a pause of silence.

"hey, i can make you a pizza real quick and bring it over once my shifts done. what do ya want on it?"

"I thought you guys were closed?"

"we are but i get free pizza, just text me what ya want and your address, k? gotta go" before you could answer you heard a small beep and your call was ended.

You leaned back on your pillows and considered his offer. That was really nice of him to go out of his way like that... he's like the coolest guy you know. You flipped through your contacts til you found "verte-bruh" and texted him.

***

Y/N : You are way too friggin nice, pepperoni would be awesome tho~!

***

You followed that with your address and sent the text. You decided to turn up the ringer volume on your phone, just in case, and began browsing through youtube videos on your laptop.

You were halfway through a particularly long video by one of your favorite channels when there were a couple knocks at your door. Your laptop was thrown aside as you darted into your living room. You half heartedly fixed up the couch before trotting to your door and peeking through the doors peep hole. 

You could see a ball cap with a pizza logo on the front staring back at you. A smile formed on your lips as you opened the door. Sans stood before you, still clad in his uniform it seemed, with his blue hoodie over top of his work clothes. He gave you a smile and a half wave.

"special delivery" he winked and held the pizza out towards you.

"Customer service has really improved, never got a free pizza before.." you smirked and took the box from him, motioning for him to follow.

"Y'know..I don't think I can eat a whole pizza by myself. You wanna stay for a bite? I mean, this is 'technically' your pizza after all.." gods you hoped you didn't sound too pushy.

Sans shrugged at you and came inside, closing the door behind him. 

"sure, my bro isn't gonna be home for a while anyways and i don't take up _mushroom_ "

You laughed as you put the box on your dining room table and went to your kitchen to get some plates. You were beyond relieved that you had tidied up as you set the dining ware on the table. You glanced out of the corner of your eye and watched Sans flop onto the couch.

"geez, this is as bad as my old couch"

"Yeah my couch sucks, but it does its job."

You served out a couple slices of pizza on two plates and sat down next to Sans on your love seat.

"sorry to _spring_ this on you but your due for an upgrade"

You smiled a bit as you handed him his plate. "Mm...beggars can't be choosers.." You shrugged and started to eat your pizza.

A look you've seen countless other times crossed Sans face as he stared at you. His eye-lights seemed to dim slightly as he took a bite. "yeah..."

You ignored the look he just had and instead turned on the tv. Pity didn't sit well with you and you were surprised Sans was the type to judge. Your chest ached slightly.. _He's just like everyone else, you shouldn't let yourself be so happy around him.._ You shook off the intrusive thought and flicked through the channels until you landed on some game show. You didn't know what else to say and your mood had deflated a little. 

"i had it rough too.." Sans had put his plate of pizza on the table at some point and was reclining with his eyes closed and his hands behind his head. You gave him a scrutinizing glance but realized he was being genuine as he spoke again.

"had to raise my lil bro by myself, so i took whatever stuff i could find to get by. i tried to give him the best that i could and i still think sometimes i could have done better.." Sans slowly opened one socket to look at you. 

That same knowing glance peering through you.

You felt shame color your face red as you forced your gaze back onto the tv. Fuck, he wasn't judging you! You are the worst, the absolute scum of the earth. He was just... being understanding. He gets it! Has it been so long that you've forgotten what sympathy looked like? Are you that jaded? Ugh you _hate_ -

"h-hey pal, what's all of this?" Sans was sitting up now and pointing at a stack of games next to the tv. His pupils were all but gone and he seemed, fidgety? . All of his attention was on you though, and he was looking through you again. You really had to ask him what was up with that..

"Oh...those are just some of my games.." you allowed yourself to be distracted as you grabbed a few from the stack and leaned back onto the couch.

"I've got DOOM, Saints Row, Dead Space...Oh I forgot I had this one!" you pulled out Super Smash Brothers and opened the case. The game wasn't inside....great.

"dead space? sounds interestin'" Sans took the case from your hands and skimmed the backside. His sockets widened a bit as his eye-lights darted back and forth, taking in all of the details. 

His face was always so expressive, you noted. He was supposed to be a skeleton but his skull looked smoother than normal bone. He had no eyes but the lights that floated within the darkness of his skull relayed more information than you'd get from most humans. His easy smile was charming, his personality was a breath of fresh air. You didn't know how he was able to be so calm, cool, and collected...not to mention cute- WhOa whoa stop! 

You slapped a hand over your forehead as you reeled your mind back in a bit.

"can we play this?" Sans seemed to ignore your antics as he tapped the case of Dead Space. His bones made a soft "clack-clack" sound against the plastic material.

"W-wha..UH .." your flustered mind floundered to find your words again. "Sorry! Uhm.. I've actually never..played that one.. you like horror games?" your hands busied themselves with another game case as you studied Sans face again. He looked surprisingly eager.

"not sure, never got to play one before. if you don't want to.. its cool" Sans shrugged.

"No..its cool if we play it! Actually that'll help me out a ton. I'm too chicken to play it by myself.." you grinned sheepishly and ran a hand through your hair. "Oh, my PS3 is in my bedroom but its all hooked up."

You stood up and headed towards your bedroom. Panic swept through you as you realized what a mess your room was. 

You kicked some clothes under your bed and quickly took that basket of dirty laundry out of your room and into the second bedroom. You snagged all the pillows from your spare room before closing the door and throwing them onto your bedroom floor. 

"What's missing..." you tapped your chin then snapped your fingers as you pulled out a couple of your fuzzy blankets from your closet. After arranging the pillows and blanket into a comfortable nest on the floor you turned on your PS3, wiping some dust off of the top of the console. Your 50" tv sat at the end of your bed on a low stand. It was more comfortable to sit on the floor and play games than to perch on the bed. Satisfied you finally noticed something.

In your whirlwind of preparing you didn't realize until now that Sans hadn't followed you in. You peeked from around your door to the living room.

"Oi, aren't you going to come in?" you could see the top of his skull twitch from the other side of the couch. 

Slowly he turned his head and peeked over the back. All you could see of his face were his eye sockets, and the noticeably larger pupils of light hovering within them.

"...uh..yeah..sure..bedroom.." you noticed he had that weird sweat again.

"Oh my god Sans..." You realized all at once what was wrong you couldn't believe it..He was being too cute, skeleton or not, and you couldn't take it..

"wha-"

"Are you?"

"no-"

"Have you never-"

"omg stop"

"Duuudeee" you let out a few chuckles as Sans ducked out of view on the couch. "It's cool, you dont have to be weirded out. I don't even really sleep in my bedroom. It's like...just titled my bedroom." You scurried out of your room and peeked over the back of the couch at a flustered Sans. He had his chin buried into the top of his hoodie, just like he did when you had breakfast together. You weren't sure but his skull looked like it was tinged blue. No idea what that's about. You pillowed your arms and laid your head on them as your stared down at Sans.

"I'm sorry for teasing you..Seriously, I sleep on my couch more than anything. Does that make you feel better?"

Sans slumped a bit on the couch and pulled his chin out from hiding. "im not weirded out"

"Sans, you look like the definition of "weirded out""

"do you always just let whatever guy go in your room?"

"Pfft you're not "whatever guy", you're...a friend, right?" You let his implication slide but hearing it come out of your own mouth like that had you questioning it yourself. You had only known each other for a couple days now, barely, and here you were inviting him into your bedroom. Thinking about it that way, it did seem a little..awkward? But you didn't feel that way, you were always a really open person.. which sometimes did get you into trouble. Maybe Sans had a point..

Sans huffed and leaned his head back to look up at you. "as long as your comfortable with it pal"

  
_♫ Twinkle Twinkle little star_

_♪ How I wonder what you are_

_♫ Up above the world so high_

_♪ Like a diamond in the sky_

"what the hell is that?" Sans had stood up with his hands in his hoodie pockets, his eagerness dancing in his eye-lights again.

The opening movie must have started playing for Dead Space due to idling. You had the volume up pretty high and cringed when the audio jarred with screeching sounds of horror. You were rethinking your recent decision.

"Heh...just as creepy as I remember..." your voice wavered and you could feel your nerves reacting already and the game wasn't even being played yet! Always a scaredy cat. You mentally pulled on your big girl pants, extra absorbent. 

"Ready to get spooped?"

He chuckled and made his way to the bedroom. "takes a lot to "spoop" me, kiddo"

You both walk in right as most of the gore is happening. It's as if you're frozen in place as you both focus on the remainder of the opening. It draws to a finish but neither of you make a move to go closer.

_♫ Though I know not what you are,_

_♪ Twinkle, twinkle, little star...._

"mildly spooped.." Sans eye lights were gone.

The look on his face threw you into a fit of laughter. "Haha well you need to be strong for the both of us bone head.." You trotted to the nest of pillows and plopped down, then held the controller up towards him. You didn't consider it before, but now that you were looking at him fully he probably wanted to get out of his work uniform.

"Oh...Sans if you want to change out of that I have some stuff you could wear. I mainly wear sweats and band t-shirts!"

His skull tinted that shade of light blue again and his eye lights returned "ill just... go home and change real quick."

"That'll take ages, you sure you wont take me up on my offer?" 

"nah, ill be back in a snap" as he spoke his left-eye flared with bright blue light and he winked, before snapping his fingers and vanishing before your eyes.

What the actual fuck...

" _WHAT!?_ " you yelled to no one in particular.

What fuckery is this?!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If your curious about the opening movie for Dead Space heres a youtube link!
> 
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WZik3a_eV-U
> 
> Its only like.. 3 min long~!


	10. Pizza and Aliens

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Where Reader tries to explain why humans like horror games

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry...! I'm honestly the worst updater. I was about ready to just trash this whole idea but, I wanna tell this story! How exiting would it be if I actually managed to finish something I started?
> 
> Anyways, I'm eager to get to the next area of this story, so thanks for sticking around this long! I'm hoping this next part will get my gears going again!

As you washed your hair your mind was reeling trying to figure out how Sans was able to vanish before your eyes. Magic wasn't anything particularly new to you. Monsters had been on the surface for 5 years now and had accomplished many amazing things. Monsters basically ran the human healthcare buildings with many becoming doctors, aides, and nurses due to their healing abilities. Some monsters, like Mettaton, took the entertainment industry by storm with their cool talents, while others excelled by opening their own privately owned restaurants that revolved around creating magical food. But you had never run into this type of magic before.

Did Sans seriously just teleport out of your home? You were so convinced it was just a trick that before you decided to take a shower you ran a quick check through your apartment to make sure he wasn't fucking with you. You expected him to be hiding in your closet or bathroom ready to play one of his farting ringtones or some nonsense. But he was no where to be found.. You dried your hair while you mused a little longer, a towel dangling from around your bare torso. A sense of deja vu tickled your chest as you finished de-tangling your locks and threw them up into a second towel before opening your bathroom door. 

"yo"

If your neighbors thought a zombie moved in before, they're probably reconsidering maybe a banshee-type had taken up residence in this apartment. Your scream reverberated off of your bathroom tiles as you stumbled backwards and roughly slammed against your sink, one arm sliding into the basin. You winced as the short skele-man stepped forward worriedly, his hands up and making unsure gestures.

"fuck! i didn't mean to scare ya that bad bud..y'okay?" his sockets had widened and his face had a worried grimace on it as you pulled yourself up to a more proper posture. You broke out into mildly hysterical, mostly embarrassed, laughter as you straightened out the only towel keeping you decent. A dim blush coated your face as your heart tried to regain a normal pace.

"Wow... wasn't expecting a jump scare before the game even started! haha geez i'm such a loser!" your head towel had come undone comically on your head and now draped haphazardly on your hair. You pulled it off and dropped it on your sink mindlessly.

The creases on Sans brow diminished a bit as he watched you recover. He himself was now wearing some sweats and a white t-shirt that read "Fold me closer tiny dancer" and depicted a piece of pizza wearing a tutu. Seriously?

You ended up stifling a fit of giggles again as you stared at his wardrobe choice. 

Sans took full notice and smirked at you. 

"what's so funny? what weir _dough_ doesn't like Elton John?" his grin returned as you began laughing again. You watched his shoulders relax as the tension of the last minute faded away. Between giggles you thought up what you thought was an amazingly clever pun, for you at least. 

"I never _sausage_ a dorky shirt before, now get out of my bathroom so I can dress, nerd" you shooed him away from the door and pointed towards the fluffy nest of pillows. "Go start the tutorial and ill be out in like 2 seconds!".

You watched his eye lights flick anxiously towards the screen and then back to you as if he were silently asking _"dont make me play this weird human horror by myself"_. A mischievous smirk graced your features as the intro started to replay itself for the 4th time since he's left. Good! Now he gets to see it by himself like you had to!

You smiled and slowly began to close the door on the skeleton. In a sing-song voice you patronized him "I'm sure you'll figure out the controls!" and with that you closed the bathroom door. 

You ignored the loud as fuck intro ( _of course you didn't leave it at max volume just in case Sans returned, nope_ ) and threw on a pair of plain gray pj bottoms and a baggy black t-shirt with a decal of the chest bursting alien on it. You blotted your hair dry with the towel you had throw in the sink and brushed your hair back into a decently neat ponytail. You inspected your reflection in the mirror and shrugged, good enough.

When you opened the door you were greeted with silence. As you walked into your room you spied a very lazy looking skeleton lounging on the end of your bed on his belly? with his arms propping up his head. The tv screen had a tech looking animation, you were guessing it was a loading screen as you plopped down on the floor in front of him.

"Aww...I was hoping you'd be stuck on the intro longer" you threw a pillow behind your back for support and waited for the game to begin.

"its not like i havent played a video game before, controls are easy. only a scrub would get stuck on the intro" 

"You callin' me a scrub?" you felt something solid poke the top of your head.

"you said it not me" 

You playfully swatted his finger from your head as the game actually, finally, started. A woman begins talking to someone named "Isaac" over a fucked up recording and the camera pans out and reveals you were inside of a spaceship.

"Pretty cool graphics for a PS3, right?" you turn to look up at Sans and you're surprised to see he has a look of intense enthrallment. He seems to be taking in the whole scene and then looks down at you, his lazy features returning.

"yeah, way better than what we had down under. the best graphics we got were from some E.T game we got from the dump. it was a pain in the ass to beat too."

The ship in game suddenly burst through some warp light and revealed the sun shining brightly in space, eclipsed by drifting rocks and accompanied by a huge planet to the left of your view and some stars littering the background. 

"Space is so pretty.."

"...yea. its really cool.." 

About 10 minutes in and you're at another ship beginning what you assume is the tutorial training. Red lighted alarms are blaring as your character gets separated from the rest of the crew.

"Aww shit, get ready!" you sat up a little straighter. You were used to watching people play horror games online and you knew some shit was about to go down.

"whats happening?"

"Pretty sure nothing goo-" you cut yourself off as a creature descends from the ceiling in the other room. It's an extremely gangly and skinny humanoid with long appendages growing out of its back. 

"Duuude..."

It walks up behind your crew mate and promptly stabs the appendages into the guy, splurting blood on the glass separating the rooms. Gurgled screams and bullet fire are muffled over the intercom and you realize Sans is sitting next to you now. When did he move? 

"Welcome to Dead Space, time to run!" 

"fuck"

A door opens and Sans guides "Isaac" through the doorway. Suddenly the thing is right behind him, barely off screen. Sans eye lights go black as he narrowly avoids the flailing creature trying to kill Isaac. 

"maybe it can be reasoned with"

"I don't think it wants to be reasoned with. I think it wants to end you."

Sans gets Isaac into an elevator right as the monster catches up to him.

"SHIT HURRY! Close the doors!"

The creature is no where to be seen as the doors close. You both share a sigh of relief as the scene calms down.

"...what if it was just trying to protect something? or-"

The doors suddenly begin to be pried open by the creatures long spike appendages. You and Sans both jump a little at the sudden intrusion.

"ITS BACK! Do something!"

"shitshitshit i cant do anything!"

The doors are slammed open wide as the creature stands before you, hideously deformed and dripping mucous from its growling maw. It springs forward for the kill but the elevator doors rapidly close, slicing its head and appendages off. The elevator finally starts to descend on rusted hinges that squeak shrilly as it moves.

The game is paused and Sans unceremoniously drops the controller onto a pillow. His sockets are closed and he sighs.

"this is really messed up"

"Heh yeah, humans are pretty twisted huh?"

"does everything have to involve killing something? or..being killed?"

"Uh..well it IS a horror game. Humans are pretty scared of the unknown and dying. Aliens are a great outlet for that shit. Or mon...sters...UH....BUT I don't mean monsters like _monsters_!..I meant monsters like....bad creatures! Like...things that kill.." you glance sideways at Sans who still has darkened sockets. You clear your throat and pick up the controller, fiddling with it. You lower your head, feeling the tension in the room rise...and sadly it's not because of the horror game you just played. _Stupid, stupid....why'd I say that.._

"Not all games are like this though" you try to continue the conversation. Anything to ignore the weird tense fog that's brewing. 

"Some horror games focus on ghosts and paranormal stuff. Psychological thrillers.."

"you got any of those?" Sans eye-lights were still dark as he looked back towards you. 

"Ah uhm.. Im guessing you didn't like Dead Space then?" your voice died off as you already knew the answer.

"...not in the least.." He sighed and rubbed his face.

"Why'd you wanna play this so bad then?" you stretched your back a bit as Sans leaned forward and started inspecting other games on your bedroom tv stand.

"eh...thought i could handle it, but its not my style. have any puzzle games?" Sans eye-lights had returned, if only dimly.

"Hmm.." you picked up the controller and browsed through your downloaded games. An old-ish favorite caught your eye and you grinned at Sans. 

"Ever heard of Tiny Brains?"

The following 2 hours consisted of playing as adorable little animals that were experimented on and given powers. Sans decided to play out the majority of the game as a little red mouse you nick-named "Martyr-Mouse" that had the power of teleportation. On more than one occasion Sans had changed places with objects and ended up falling into lava or into an abyss. 

You on the other hand enjoyed swapping amongst the other 3 animals which consisted of a bat, a rabbit and a hamster. Your favorite was the bat, cause you could troll Sans with it more. 

Sans was about to place the block into the proper receptacle when you pushed both him and the object over a cliff with your bats' ability.

"i was about to beat the puzzle!" Sans chuckled and nudged you sideways, sending you toppling into a fit of laughter.

"You-you shouldn't have stolen the cube off of me then!" you threw your hands in the air and declared "I must be the one to beat every puzzle! I have to be the greatest!"

Sans chuckled "alright _Papyrus_ "

You sat up, a few laughs trickling out of you as you asked questioningly, "What or who is Papyrus?"

Sans rubbed the back of his skull, "oh i never did tell you my bros name"

"Ooohhhh, makes sense. Font-names. He likes to win a lot i'm guessing?"

"yep, hes competitive but thats probly cuz of Undynes influence. uh, 'nother one of our friends." Sans had brought the pizza in at some point during your gaming session and just pulled the last piece from out of the box.

"Sounds like a fun guy. I wonder if he could handle Dead Space.."

Sans nearly choked on his pizza. He promptly swallowed and dropped the cold slice back onto his or your plate, you didn't remember, or care. 

"hes not the video game type bud. if anything he'd just wanna go outside and do stuff."

"Ohhh well that's cool too." You grabbed the pizza box and stood up to go to the kitchen. "Wanna take a break from games for a second?"

"actually, i needa head home. Pap's probably waiting for me by now." Sans stood up and grabbed his jacket from off of your bed.

"It is a little late, for _normal_ people" you both chuckled as you walked into the living room. You placed the pizza box on the dining room table and turned back to say goodnight to Sans. 

"I guess ill see ya around..oh and thanks again for the pizza, Tony's is pretty good!"

"yeah, his pizza can't be topped. gnite (y/n)"

"Goodnight San- wait.." 

You realized that last line was a pun as he vanished, leaving behind little blue particles.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always comments are appreciated! I love hearing what you guys have to say! Really helps keep me motivated! You are all awesome! Thanks for reading!


	11. What?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Where Reader does this shit to herself...seriously

You don't know how you managed it. After Sans left you proceeded to hop online and do some quests and dailies on your favorite MMORPG until the ass-crack of dawn. You had forgotten about your homework entirely, so while curled up in bed, ready to go to sleepytown junction you nearly had a heart attack when you remembered. 

With only an hour left before the deadline you managed to pull both assignments out of your arse, figuratively speaking. You mentally high-fived yourself as you scanned over your work for mistakes and then submitted all of it to Mr. Roberts. With a huff you flopped back onto the pillows on your bed and allowed yourself to relax a bit. It was 6 AM and you still hadn't slept yet, but you felt fine. Your head was clear, you didn't have to clean your apartment, you still had like, 5 hours til class. The sweet sweet satisfaction of having nothing to do, fuck yes. 

The seconds turned into minutes, minutes into moments as you spaced out on your bed. Thoughts of brutal killing and blood flying through the air flashed in your mind as you let it wander unfettered. Dead Space really isn't good for your psyche you decided. You frowned and flipped onto your side, willing your mind to forget about that game and Sans dark eye sockets. 

Ughh! WHY did you have to think of Sans.. Guilt surged up against your will and sat in your chest. You had said some insensitive things...did Sans take what you said as racist? Oh god, were you racist? Before that thought could finish you already knew the answer. You would choose monsters over humans any day. If you were racist, it was against your own kind..and that would be more specist wouldn't it? Argghh...what are you even thinking about?

You groaned and pulled a pillow over your head. God you were dumb. Shut up brain...just let me sleep..

_You will never be able to sleep_

You sighed, you were so tired of sighing... you were tired of everything honestly. You were tired of being a bad student, you were tired of living your life paycheck to paycheck, you were tired of struggling to survive with no sleep, tired of failing at socializing with people, you were tired of being tired for fucks sake. 

_You should just stay a l o n e_

You sat up and turned your TV back on, finding some random infomercial plaguing the early morning program schedule, and then turned off your bedside light. The light from the TV was just enough illumination for you to feel comfortable as you allowed yourself to turn off your mind and try to sleep.

*Bump

In your half-consciousness you think you heard something. You listened for a moment but exhaustion crept up over you not long after.

#### *Bump. 

*BANG *CRASH

You jolted awake in your bed as the sound of something smashing echoed through your wall. Your heart was racing a mile a minute as your hazy mind tried to orient reality from your dreams. Is someone breaking in? Oh no...nono!

You slipped out of bed as quietly as you could and shoved an arm under your bed, frantically searching in the darkness. After pushing through a blockade of dirty clothes your finger tips finally found what you were looking for. With a quick pull, out came ol' reliable, your baseball bat.

Now armed you quickly stood up and went to your bedroom door.

" _Please_ no! You can have **anything** in here but please don't take-!" the sound of a voice came through your far bedroom wall muffled, followed by another loud crash. You flinched reflexively at the sound and opened your bedroom door. Sure enough, as you peeked into your living area, no one was there. Someone else was being robbed. You didn't know what to do next...The cops! Right! You turned back into your bedroom and grabbed your cell phone from off of your nightstand. Only 20% battery left, good enough.

You propped up the bat against your leg while your shaky hands quickly punched in the emergency number for the authorities. A scream emitted from the other side of the wall but it was quickly quieted. Your heart dropped as you realized the implications...the police were going to be too late, or already might be. 

*Ring ring, *Ring ring, *Ring ring.. 

Pick up pick up _pickuppickuppickup!_

"Hello, what's your emergency?"

"My neighbors being robbed right now!..I'm hearing loud crashes and screaming from the other side of my wall!" you try to keep your voice down, now that you know how thin the walls apparently are.

"Okay, what's your address?"

You gave out your address and then the woman on the line assured you a police unit will be heading out there as soon as they could. She told you to stay inside and keep your door locked. You thanked the woman and hung up, pocketing your phone... it was out of your hands now.

You picked the bat back up and as quietly as you could you crept across your bedroom and gingerly placed an ear against the wall. Were they still here? You couldn't hear anything for a moment.

"Just grab it and let's go!" a deep voice barked out orders and the sound of multiple footsteps began to trudge out of ear shot. They were leaving it seemed.

You gripped your bat tighter and stalked out of your bedroom and out to your front door, where you cracked your door open and peeked out. No one was in the hallway yet and you breathed a gentle sigh of relief. Oh shit, the woman on the phone told you to lock your door. Just as you were about to pull your door shut, your neighbors door to your right opened with a soft 'chink'. Your heart picked up pace as you tried to close your door as much as possible without making it click shut. Shit. Shitshitshit-

As the other door opened you could see a large figure clothed in black and wearing a mask, peek their head out into the hallway. They must have thought the coast was clear cause they pushed a small monster-rabbit girl out into the hallway. Her arms were tied behind her back and she stumbled roughly forward and then down onto her knees. A man, much smaller than the previous one you had seen, sauntered out, also clothed in black and wearing a mask, and roughly grabbed her by her ears and forced her back up onto her feet.

"Move...now! n' be quiet about't" ... you recognized that voice. But from where?

The bunny girl whimpered slightly as she stood up on her own two feet, and then was pushed forwards. Her blue nightgown was ripped near her chest and she didn't have any shoes on her feet. As she turned away from you, you could see the left side of her face was badly swollen, and she was limping slightly. Your heart ached in rage and sadness. Who the fuck does this to people? Monsters or otherwise!? What were they going to do to her? WHERE ARE THE POLICE?! For fucks sake... they won't make it in time!

Your body moved on it's own accord and before you knew it you had taken 3 long strides towards the small man. Your movements were quiet enough that he didn't notice you were there until it was too late.

#### *CRACK!

The sound on metal whipping against soft bone created a sickening crunch sound that echoed dully through the hallway. A line of blood splattered against the far wall as the man crumpled beneath your attack. You didn't mean to swing that hard....you didn't! You just wanted to knock him out! Oh god...oh no...oh no oh no nono-nonononononono! The taste of salt began to form across your tongue as your stomach threatened to heave. You-

"Thank you! Thank you so much! Thank you!" suddenly the bunny girl had her face pressed against you, sobbing fearfully into your chest. She kept repeating her gratitude over and over again. As you looked down at her you took a deep breath, this was the right thing to do. This was..necessary..right? You took another breath to get a hold of yourself and placed your free hand on the girls shoulder.

"We need to go, now! Can you run?" You were speaking without really thinking. Did we need to run? You had taken out the man already but as you untied her arms, grabbed the girls hand and started to race down the hall you remembered the _bigger_ problem, and it was chasing after you!

_Why did you get involved in this mess?_

You silently chastised yourself as you barreled through the doors to the stairwell with your shoulder, both you and the girl now rushing top speed to escape your apartment complex. You didn't need a reason to help people, you just do it. Who would just stand idly by and let an innocent person get kidnapped if they could do something about it!

_But it's none of your business right? What will you do now?_

The thought that you had no idea what you were doing crossed your mind as you finally reached the bottom of the stairwell. You chanced a glance upwards and saw a gun pointed straight at you from a flight up. It felt like time stopped as your eyes widened in horror. A deafening ring sounded around you as the gun went off and the sparks of the bullet hitting the railing in front of you cause you to trip and stumbled forward. What the hell!

As you slid onto the ground, the bunny girl vanished through the large exit doors, leaving you behind. The metal doors clanked against the brick wall outside before slowly beginning to close in on themselves. You were pissed for a moment as you got back up to your feet. Every man for themselves huh? You ran towards the doors-

"Don't move another inch, girly!" a deep voice growled out the order, his voice more so commanding as it echoed through the stairwell.

You stopped in your tracks, cursing under your breath. You could already imagine that a gun was being pointed directly at your back, ready to pierce a hole straight into you. You were shaking. This was a bad decision after all...

You could hear heavy footsteps getting closer to you as you kept your back turned. They came to a stop right behind you, and you could feel your hair standing on end. 

" _ **T u r n A r o u n d**_ " the deep voice was barely above a whisper as his command was spoken next to your ear. His hot breath sent a chill down your spine...but you complied.

As you turned you came face to chest with the large man, clothed in all black. You slowly crane your head back to look up at him..His face was obscured by a mask with only his eyes showing. Deep, blue eyes. They glinted down at you and you felt as if he was seeing right through you...

"You're more _interesting_ than that monster trash..." his voice sounded like a kid that had found a perfect new toy..

Then it all went black.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Man, I wish I had seen this coming.
> 
> Comments always appreciated!


	12. Lost and Found

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Where puns aren't finished

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Updated tags
> 
> Sorry for this short chapter, but I kept writing after the previous chapter and so...you got this tiny little thing.
> 
> Also changed eyes from red to blue *shrug* dont worry about it
> 
> ((Ive been on a hiatus cause...personal reasons. Sorry for the lack of content! I Will be on break from school soon! Wish me luck on finals! -editted : oct 2nd)) ))

You couldn't breath.

You were sinking further into darkness and you couldn't move. What's happening? 

Pain..?

You felt like something was wrong. A dull pain was surrounding you but you didn't understand. Panic gripped your entire being as you struggled to get out of this suffocating dark space.

_*Creak....creak..._

You needed to get out of here! You were going to drown in it at this rate! You could faintly hear the sound of soft groaning. 

You struggled to get control of yourself.

"Heh, finally waking up girly?"

A voice cut through the darkness, deep and amused. You knew this voice, and it struck _fear_ into you. 

_Wake up_

Your eyes fluttered open but you were still in darkness. You tried to breathe but a large hand was grasped around your windpipe.

That dull pain returned more sharply as you felt something thrust deep inside of you. You tried to cry out but all air was denied to you. Your hands were pinned above your head and you could now feel the weight of something on top of you.

"Glad you could finally join me, this was getting rather boring by myself." You felt someone grab your breast and twist it hard, making you cry out. Suddenly a greater pain surged through your shoulder as something was stabbed into it.

" **AHHHHSTOP!** " you managed to scream before you were choked into silence.

"What was that? Did you want me to stop?" The voice coo'ed patronizingly at you.

The motions ceased for a moment and you were allowed a breath of air. As you panted painfully in the darkness, a face appeared very close to yours. The stark white of their skin was noticeable even in this dark room and those unmistakable blue eyes met yours hungrily. You could feel your eyes flowing with tears as the pain of your wound mixed with the fear and lack of control over this situation.

"You don't really think you have a right to say that... _do you?_ " another thrust left your body shaking as it reacted on its own. With all your willpower you ignored the feelings building up inside of you. You were disgusted and your stomach churned with sickness.

"If you really wanted me to stop then maybe you wouldn't at like such a slut" he laughed and picked up his pace. "You are a new one though.. never seen a soul quite like this before". The creaking of the bed matched with his pace and sent you spiraling to a new level of misery.

"And your _LV_. You're just like me.." he growled his finding in your ear but you were already slipping back into unconsciousness. You felt something cold and slick slide up your neck and hurried yourself back towards the darkness creeping over your mind. Anything to get away from this....

"Tsk, tsk..." he grasped the object in your shoulder again and twisted, jolting you painfully back to reality. You cried out as he grabbed your face with one hand. "You aren't leaving me alone again so soon, we only have so much time together..and so much to _do_ " you could feel something warm dribbling down your neck..

 

Darkness. How long have you been here?

You could feel your body floating numbly as you allowed yourself to slip further away. This familiar place was eagerly pulling you deeper into itself. You didn't feel anything anymore, you just wanted to fade away. You couldn't remember anything, and you realized you didn't _want_ to remember anything. You could feel a dull thump from your chest and weakly put a hand over it. 

Your dull grey heart fluttered uselessly into your palm, thumping slower and slower. You could see it emitting a soft light, even while surrounded by this empty place. A faint cracking sound emanated around you, followed by another, and a third. You watched as tiny flecks of your heart fell away and disintegrated in the dark, before the entire thing burst a part in a dazzling show of light blue.

 

Your chest suddenly ached as you threw your hair up into a second towel. You were standing in your bathroom, finishing up with your shower. Ugh more chest pains.. you waited a moment as you leaned against the sink and allowed it to pass. Fucking great, they're getting worse. You sighed and pushed your negative shit out of your mind. You were not about to let your depression ruin this gaming night with Sans! Oh right, you need to hurry up and finish getting dressed before-

"yo"

As you opened the door, the familiar short skeleton was grinning on the other side. You smiled back at him and leaned in the doorway. "Do you do this often? Y'know...camp outside of girls bathrooms while they shower?" you teased him as you crossed your arms.

He looked up at you and shrugged lazily, with one eye open. " _'Water_ the chances I..." his voice faded away as he looked through you again. His relaxed posture suddenly stiffened as his smile became plastered on, giving him a less friendly expression. You felt a chill go down your spine as he lowered his arms and placed his hands in his pockets. He looked up at you with dark, lifeless eyes.

" _ **what exactly are you playing at here, kid?**_ "

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, thank you for reading! Thank you!
> 
> And comments are always appreciated!


	13. Let it Out

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Where Reader reconsidered her cupboards design choice

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know I haven't posted in a long while, sorry about that. I just... have been fighting with my own depression. Welp.. Let's try to keep this ball rollin'!

The tension in the room grew thick as you tried to wrap your head around his attitude. You stood up straighter and looked down at the skeleton with an eyebrow raised as Sans stared you down, you'd even say he was being down right menacing. You anxiously took the towel from off of your head and draped it around your shoulders, allowing your hair to pillow around your head.

"Playing at? What are you talking about?" You could feel goosebumps prickling your skin as worry settled in your chest. What's going on? He was fine a moment ago until. Until- .. you gently pressed a hand to your chest. You could feel your heart beat under your palm.

"Sans, what are you doing when you're...you're.. looking through me?" you gripped your towel a little tighter as you stared down at him.

Sans glanced away from you, his ever present grin twitching slightly. His voice came out hesitant and quiet "....your soul..."

"My what?"

He scowled but met your eyes and spoke clearly "your _soul_. im checkin' out your soul ..and im honestly not impressed with what im seein' pal" Sans took a step back from you and leaned against the opposite wall across from you.

"My _soul_?" An image of a grey heart flashed through your mind suddenly. "Oh...so that's my soul..". That made so much sense that you mentally kicked yourself for not realizing it sooner. When the monsters originally emerged from the underground, the appearance of souls had suddenly become a huge deal. You had never seen it in action live though. You thought souls were like balls of light not little cartoon hearts.

"so yknow what it is then. shouldn't be surprised with LV that high"

"I have a high LV? What's that mean?...Where is this even coming from?" you didn't know that Sans was able to see souls, let alone yours. Yours was gray, murky...broken. You felt very self conscious knowing Sans had seen it. Your hand that was on your chest clenched your towel tighter. You had spent a lot of time playing with your 'soul' when you were younger. Its bright blue light often times served as a night light during your rougher evenings as a child you remembered. You knew it was a part of you, and as you aged you watched it change, dim, and feel less and less familiar until that beautiful glow had just about vanished... 

Sans didn't say anything, but instead pushed himself away from the wall and hesitated at your bedroom door before turning around and making his way to your couch. "maybe you should throw some clothes on first."

You felt a tinge of embarrassment and anger. Why was he being so...stand-offish? You didn't do anything wrong..You huffed and went into the bathroom to get dressed. A black t-shirt with a decal of the chest bursting alien was sitting on your toilet lid along with a pair of gray sweats. You moped a bit, there probably wasn't going to be a "game" night at this rate. You pulled on the sweats and quickly retreated into your bedroom to find a different shirt. You found a plain black tank-top and threw it on before heading back out to the living room. 

You find Sans fiddling with the case of a game while he sits on the love-seat. You considered sitting next to him but his body language has you taking a spot at the dining room table instead.

"Alright so...whats the problem with LV?" your voice wavers a bit as you ask the obvious question. You knew you had stats but never figured out what LV stood for. You had seen it raise itself before but it only brought up more questions. You could feel a slight thump in your chest, a gentle excitement bubbling up. You were finally going to get some answers..

"LV stands for level of violence..and yours just keeps on risin'. what did you do while i was gone?" You could see he still had that stoney, fake smiley face on, and you bristled at his accusation.

"Violence? You think?.... _all_ I did was take a shower. What are you insinuating here?" 

"LV doesnt just appear on souls, it has to be earned through violent acts. wonder what would have happened if i hadn't broken up your lil fight in the bar" Sans stood up and began walking over towards the dining room table.

"It's not like I _wanted_ to deal with that jerk! I was minding my own business when that guy, uh..." You could feel your face flushing red as your brain scrambled to remember a name. Sans eyes were boring into yours, and you _for some reason_ , were trying desperately to defend yourself. As if Sans was just waiting for a reason to distrust you and you **really** hated the idea of that happening.

"'Steve!'" you snapped your fingers and started tapping them on the table as you relayed your side of the story.

"Steve came up and **bothered** me. He was drunk off his ass too. I didn't pick..." you cut yourself off as you reconsidered your actions that night... _did_ you pick that fight? You had made fun of his date and then tried to take a picture of her passed out. Your chest tightened as you considered it might be your fault that it escalated that far. "But I didn't want to fight.."

"look pal, i just want to know how ya gained 2 LV in the short time i was gone." Sans had his left hand free and rubbing the back of his skull.

"I...don't know. I really didn't do anything.." you rested your head on the table, your usual negativity settling inside you easily. You felt your chest thump pitifully and raised a hand over it. Without thinking you pulled out your soul and let it hover in your hand on top of the table. You had never done this in front of anyone before, but it didn't feel out of place around Sans for some reason. The murky gray was all that could be seen in your soul. "This isn't the first time this has happened..." you murmured quietly to yourself. As you stared at your soul you could indeed see that the LV had raised since the last time you looked at it.

Sans stared at your soul for a moment and the lights returned to his eyes. Seeing you look so defeated and holding your gray soul took all of his determination out of him. He didn't really think you were the type of person to just go killing things randomly either. He sighed and pulled up a chair at the dining room table, and sat across from you.

"this isn't the first time this has happened huh..." he pointed a skeletal finger at your soul. "mind taking a trip down memory lane?" Sans crossed his arms and leaned back in his chair.

You felt your heart drop in your chest as he uttered those words, your chest constricting as memories threatened to bubble up to the surface. You pushed your anxiety down as you tried to look unperturbed. Nope, you were not about to dig up those fucking issues, not now and not with Sans. You stood up from the table in what you thought was a non-chalant action, but really it was as sudden as anything, and went over to the cupboard.

"I really don't think it has anything to do with t-this ..uh.. situation. Want some tea? Hot tea sounds really good right now!" you ran your fingers through your hair as you scanned your bare shelves with your free hand. Thank gods, you have some tea left. As you busied yourself with finding a pot, you didn't notice the lil skele man appear at your side.

"(y/n)"

Nope..nope nope .. need a distraction. Anything...Anything...! You refused to look anywhere but straight at your suddenly super interesting bare cupboards.

"look. we've all done things we aren't proud of..." You chanced a sidelong glance at that comment, and saw that Sans wasn't looking at you, but instead his gaze seemed unfocused and far away as he stared at the sink. His voice came out gentle, even though the context was anything but. 

"be straight with me here pal. did you.. kill someone?".

His question sent a sudden jolt down your spine causing you to lose your grip on the small pot you just found. It clanked noisily against the metal tub of your sink, your body jerking away from the sound. Shit. Shit shit shit.. he thinks you killed someone..!..

Your body was screaming for you to run. To run away from your problems. To do anything, just do something! But your perseverance locked your limbs in place. You didn't want to run, that would only make you look more guilty.. What are you supposed to do? You tried for so long to keep this out of your mind and everything's just coming up...the past just wont leave you alone..

You could feel the cool metal of the sink beneath your fingertips, unsure of when you had started to grip the edge of the counter. Your breathes were becoming more ragged as you finally realized you were panicking. Great, just great! On top of everything now your about to go into a fucking panic attack. Fuck.. Why did tonight suddenly turn to shit?!

The apartment was silent for a moment as neither you nor Sans knew what to do next. 

You forced yourself to take in a few deep breaths, trying to chill out before an attack even started. In your peripheral you saw Sans move away from you a bit. You turned your head so he couldn't see your face. Gods did you look guilty... Shallow misery gripped your chest as you allowed yourself to wallow in self pity. How did you manage to fuck this up...?

"sorry, i wish i had a **killer** joke right now to make ya feel better" You glanced over and Sans easy grin was back, but still looked unnatural. He was over by your front door. Was he leaving? He really thinks.. He shrugged and put one hand on the door handle. This was it. Your losing yet another person in your life. _He was going to leave forever.._ And it wasn't even your fault this time!

Your legs felt like they would crumble as your eyes widened in fear. Shock? Worry? A sob wracked your chest as it escaped your lips. No one ever stays..never.. Your legs gave out from under you as you slumped to the floor.

"I..I didn't..." your voice was watery as your words came out slightly garbled and laced with emotion. And here come the water works. Fuck, you really hate this. You're the worst. Just awful. The tears came out in a rush as your soul laid on the tile a few feet from you, forgotten for the moment. You didn't realize you had let it go...

The colors of your soul swirled and churned different shades of grey, resembling something a kin to dark sky before a storm. You could feel your emotions fighting one another, each desperately fighting for domination, but one _persevered_. 

Sans didn't say anything, he just stayed at the door while you let your head hang down between your arms as your hands refused to release their grip from the sink. He took his hand off the door handle and faced you again, though you're unaware.

"guess that's my answer then-"

"Me."

Your voice came out against your will as you hid your face from his sight. For some reason your heart was twisting, clenching, begging for you to finally say it out loud. The pain you buried, those impossible to forget memories. They were demanding your attention now. After all that you'd already faced, what do you have left to lose. You forced yourself to look at Sans.

"...I killed...myself.."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, comments n' stuff are appreciated! 
> 
> Thank you for reading! I feel like the story is controlling me instead of vice versa (￣ﾍ￣ ﾒ)


	14. Chit chat

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Where Reader needs to buy more sugar..

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally putting out an update! I wanted to make this chapter longer, much much longer but instead I had to stop here. Sorry its a little short.

Outside of your apartment you could faintly hear a few people laughing as they made their way down the hallway. It barely registered in the back of your mind as a pot of water was starting to boil on your stove, filling your otherwise quiet kitchen with the sound of steam rising. A short click followed by the sound of someone rummaging through drawers, trying to figure out where you put your utensils, rattled you back to mild awareness. 

"...Second drawer down on the right.." you were still fairly withdrawn from the situation so your voice was small, and strained. The sound of tinkling silverware and a grunt of acknowledgement responded. Shortly after, two mugs of hot water were sitting on the table before you with tea beginning to steep inside. 

Some odd minutes prior to this, you think Sans managed to coerce you off the floor. You were vaguely aware of someone helping you stand and sit at the table but you had already put up your mental walls. The words had come tumbling out of your mouth faster than you could reconsider your actions. Why...why did you tell that to him? You didn't owe him anything...he was some guy you just met .. and yet.

What was he going to think of you now? No one knew other than you and the hospital in your old town...and now Sans. You hadn't managed to bring yourself to look at him again. Before this, right when you looked into his sockets and saw those small lights reacting to what you had declared, it sapped what little determination you had left. You had seen that look before. Shock and...disappointment.

You could remember over hearing the nursing staff outside of your hospital room, talking about what you had done. Their voices were laced with pity and it left you feeling somehow regretful. It's only natural right? When you make a mistake you try to fix it. You should never have been born...right? so..so dying.. _How cowardly. They should have just left you to your fate. You deserved it, you deserved to d-_

"of everything tonight, that was the last thing i was expectin'.." Sans had been busy while you were in your head. As you pushed your memories back and started to refocus on your surroundings, you noticed there were roughly 20 empty sugar packets on the table next to his mug, and he was still pouring more in. Even in your sorry state you managed to look a little incredulously at him.

"Wow...that's gonna be super gross..." you didn't mean for your voice to come out so dead-pan, not that you could help it even if you wanted to. Your remark seemed to make Sans smile a bit wider though. It didn't look so menacing anymore.. 

"heh nah, this is going to be top notch quali _tea_ " he sent a wink your way and tried to stir it with a spoon. It looked as if he was trying to mix cement. He gave up and left the spoon sticking straight up in the middle. This was so stupid. What a waste of sugar. You wanted to be annoyed but the more you stared at it .... you chuckled a bit.

"Would you like some tea with your sugar?...." you could feel your facial muscles moving against your will, a small smile gracing your features but it didn't last long before a sigh escaped you. It seems trying to be positive isn't going to help..

"I'm surprised you can goof off in this situation.." a frown returned to your face as you turned your gaze away.

"heh.." Sans eyes fell back down to his mug of goop and he traced the rim with one boney finger. "i prefer to keep things light-hearted if i can help it. besides, you look like you could use a laugh."

...Perhaps if this was any other issue, you would have appreciated that. 

"So.. now what?". You were beginning to form an annoying headache in the front of your skull from all your previous crying. You propped your head listlessly in your hand, resting your free hand in front of you, and stared at the table. The silence that followed was almost answer enough for you. There wasn't an easy answer to this, you knew that, and yet you let the moments drag out. You wanted to hear him say it, deep deep down you wanted him to say what the others had. If he said it, that would be it. You might finally be able to give up again and the responsibility would be off of you. It would be Sans fault...

A feeling of disgust settled in your guts at your own thoughts.... but you waited.

"..m'not sure what to make of you right now t'be honest.."

You felt an icy feeling form in your soul as your eyes threatened to let loose a fresh onslaught of tears. It was almost a relief, if not for the numbing ache constricting your chest. You couldn't tell what kind of expression you had right now but it had Sans back pedaling a bit.

"uhh that came out wrong, wait" he scooched his chair closer to you and tried to re-word his thoughts.

"see, what i mean is... in the underground, if someone dies..they don't come back..." he muttered something under his breath that you didnt quite catch. Your anxiety lessened as you listened more. He wasn't judging you, just yet at least.

"when monsters fall down, they dont get back up." Again, he muttered something you didn't quite hear. 

"jus' tryin to wrap my skull around the idea...while i been up here on the surface ive read a few articles about humans dyin and comin' back to life through defibrillation. pretty amazin'" he scratched the back of his skull and grimaced down at your chest.

"if what your sayin is true then.. that would imply you gained LV from acting violently towards yourself. never heard of it being done that way but it isn't that far fetched.." Sans seemed more like he was talking to himself than to you for that last bit. He fell silent as you assumed he was staring at your soul. It must have returned inside of you on its own at some point, you noted.

A soft silence fell between the two of you after that. It seemed that Sans was lost in his own thoughts just as much as you were. You were relieved he wasn't leaving...too relieved if you were being honest with yourself. You just met him a couple days ago and you had somehow gotten somewhat attached. _Now he knows how weak you are.._ Fucking brilliant.

You fingered the sides of your mug absent-mindedly, the hot ceramic against your fingertips keeping you somewhat grounded. He didn't fuel your fire, instead he said things much less expected. That chill was still in your soul but the numbness was fading away, a little. 

You blew on your hot tea and took a sip gingerly, allowing its hot contents to fill and relax your senses. It was bitter and could use some more sugar.. You reached for your sugar tray only to find it devoid of any sugar. He seriously used all of it. His cup was literally a disaster area. A soft groan left you as you forced yourself to stand. You reached over and took Sans cup, depositing it in the sink. While you were up you figured you'd check in the fridge to see if you had any sweetened creamer left. You spied some at the bottom of the fridge and noticed something else..

"Look what I found decaying in the back of my fridge" You slid a new cup in front of Sans, filled with 'fancy ketchup'. He was still preoccupied with his own thoughts it seemed, since he barely reacted at all. He propped up his head in one of his hands and lifted the cup with his other, seemingly to take a drink, when he suddenly stopped.

"wait, 'decaying'? how old is this?" the cup was hovering only inches away from his face as he stared at you questioningly. 

"Eh, it's fine, don't worry" He hesitated a moment and once again dipped a single skeletal finger into his drink, just like he did at the diner. You assumed he was satisfied with the taste, since he took a long drag on it seconds after trying out the flavor. You focused on your own drink, pouring the last bit of your creamer into the bitter tea. 

Sans gaze had fallen on you, you noticed. You took a drink without looking at him and cleared your throat.

"What is it...? I figure you have questions...?" You felt like were opening up Pandora's box now...Your statement came out a smidge reluctant, but it was enough to have Sans pushing his cup of ketchup aside. He already knew enough to make you uncomfortable, whats a few more questions..

"yea, one things been kinda naggin' at me. if you didnt kill anyone.. and you gained what LV you have from.." he did an awkward motion with his hands, like he was trying to find a way around saying the next couple of words. He gave up the struggle.

"..killin' yourself. then when i left...did you.....?" his eyes bore into yours, waiting for you to answer his unspoken question. Your lips pressed into a thin line as you figured out what he was asking. 

"I only took a shower...that's it. I swear.." you kept eye contact with him and after a moment he sighed a looked away. 

"there are help lines if y-." 

"I DON'T NEED HELP LINES! I TOLD YOU I DIDN'T TRY TO KILL MYSELF, OKAY!?!? PLEASE...!" you had stood up violently and smashed your fists on the table. The tears that had been just waiting to be released ran down your cheeks out of frustration. This is why you didn't tell people...

"That happened a long LONG time ago...and only once..." you straightened up from the table and wrapped your arms around yourself. You quickly wiped your eyes on the back of your arm, trying to regain at least a little dignity. You had cried more in the last 20 minutes than you had in the last 3 years of your life. You heard the sound of chair legs squeaking on the tiles and looked up to see Sans had also stood up. He pulled out his cellphone and tapped a few buttons. Out of nowhere he pulled out a notebook and pen. Literally out of thin air. If you weren't so disgruntled you may have found it mysterious.

He proceeded to write on the paper and then ripped the page out from the notebook. After somehow depositing the notebook and pen back into his phone, he held the paper out towards you. On it, written in surprisingly neat handwriting, was an address and Dr. Alphys name. 

"im not the type to pry usually, so m'sorry for the 3rd degree. its not my business. but..if you want you can go talk to my friend. she's no psychologist but she knows a thing or two about these situations. you dont have to but, offers there.".

You took the piece of paper and gently placed it on the table so you wouldn't lose it. You were glad to have an address considering she didn't give you any way of contacting her. 

"I already met Dr. Alphys before...She came to my college recently to find participants in her dream study..." 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading and sticking with the story! You guys are the best!
> 
> I also wanted to say that Reader has regrets for reasons, so hopefully that doesn't upset anyone...


	15. Note from the Author

I just feel like I should offer an update here. :<

To the readers so far,

I'm not dead. The story isn't dead. I have just been extremely busy with college, finals, and stressing out over real life issues. 

My heart and mind just haven't been in a healthy place to write and I'm really hating that I haven't updated this in such a long time! 

I have not forgotten about this and I do plan to finish it, or at least keep going for as long as I can with it...

I have been writing chapter 15 for months now (off and on) and I do plan to post SOMETHING up soon (like within a week? imma try my best). I really wanted to make it super long like the first chapter to make up for my lack of updates but ...we'll see.... I even have part of the final chapter of this arc written already just...getting there is proving rather difficult to figure out. 

Sorry for such a long wait guys, and I still cant promise you a normal updating time. Random updates will continue to be a thing :/

As always, thank you so much for reading.


	16. Sirens

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Where Reader gets some excercise

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, it's the update that I rewrote like..20 times!  
> Were going to get to the end of this arc eventually :D.....eventually

You had decided to lean against your kitchen counter as you tried to concentrate while Sans explained some things. Your head was really aching at this point, diminishing your mood to talk, but you didn't want to chase Sans off either. It seems that he was Alphy's partner in this whole "Sleep Study" project. You had made it through your cup of tea by the time he had finished giving out the minor details. 

After setting your tea cup down in the sink, you turned back to him with your arms loosely crossed.

"So wait.. This isn't just about trying to figure out the meaning behind the dreams? I know she said something about.." you made a swirly hand gesture as you tried to remember the details from the seminar. Mindlessly your other hand drifted to your forehead as you tried to recall what exactly she said.

"about uh...psychic abilities.. OH! _Unlocking_ magic abilities in humans?" 

Sans scratched his cheekbone with one finger as he closed his sockets, seemingly deep in thought. His eyebrow bones became slightly scrunched together.

"shes uh...been tryin figure out if theres a way to connect dreams to alternate realities with the kings encouragement. we havent made much progress by way of monsters so we figured maybe a little _determination_ would lead us in the right direction. thats where the human college kids come in." Sans finished off his cup of ketchup and placed his cup in the sink next to yours.

You waited for him to continue, but he didn't. He merely leaned against the sink next to you. As if he answered all of your questions. 

"And?...." you dragged out the word as you looked at him expectantly.

"and what?"

"How is that going to unlock magic abilities in humans? The stuff Dr. Alphys was talking about? Psychic stuff? Time travel?!"

"its all speculation for now bud, no use in getting your hopes up for nothin right?" he grinned up at you but realized you did not look amused. A look of disbelief crossed his features as a sigh escaped him.

"look, this is stuff youre not even spose tknow about. real classified information. if i told you anymore, Alph would skin me, swear to the king." he exaggerated his statement by dramatically placing a hand over his chest where his heart would be, if he had one. You weren't buying his story but you gave in anyways.

"You don't even have skin..." you mumbled. You couldn't tell if he actually had to keep it secret or if he was just being evasive cause he didn't want to bother to explain further.. 

"Fine fine..no more prying for _magical_ information.." you tapped your chin as you considered something else. "How about a normal question? Like, let's say. Someone has a sleeping disorder. Would this sleep study be able to fix it?.."

This time Sans didn't look like he needed to think about his answer at all. "possibly. m'sure theres already meds out there for someone with that kinda problem though. you askin for a friend...or?"

"For me.. That night at Grillby's I was out for basically the same reason as you. Didn't get to tell you that though, was kinda distracted...by puke...and puns." You pushed yourself away from the sink and gently picked up the paper Sans gave you from off of the table. As you gazed down at the address again a calm silence fell between you two. You decided that you probably would pay Dr. Alphys a visit as you reread the address for the third time. Maybe she'd give you some more answers, you thought.

Sans turned to face you then, his posture relaxed and his hands in his hoodie pockets, "well, i need to head home. Paps probably waiting for me by now.."

"'Paps'? What or who is Paps, if you don't mind my asking.." You placed the paper back on the table and watched as Sans meandered his way towards your front door, then followed him sluggishly.

Sans rubbed the back of his skull, "oh i never did tell you my lil bros name...i think?" he paused for a moment but shrugged, putting his hand on your front door handle. "he's really cool, honestly the best guy around." he flashed you his signature lazy grin, and you felt like a normalcy was coming back between you...sort of.

You managed to give him a small, tired smile in return and stepped out in the hall with him. It was almost entirely empty, except for a couple of people at the far end chatting. You clicked the door behind you and sheepishly re-folded your arms.

"Look", one of your hands freed themselves and began running itself through your hair, "let's forget tonight even happened.. can things stay cool between us? I know im a bit sketch and weird but-"

"nah, were **cool**." Sans stopped you with a raise of a hand. He returned it to his pocket and had a look on his face that was a mix between awkward and apologetic. "just.. hope you dont feel _ice_ solated after this. oh..and sorry for not playing that game with ya, kinda lost the spirit?" 

"Yeeeaaahhh that's an understatement my friend..." a yawn escaped you then and Sans took that as his queue to get going.

"dont forget to lock your door. ill see ya" and with a wave and a snap Sans was gone, once again leaving behind those little blue particles.

 

After washing the mugs that you and Sans used, you decided to turn in for the night. You rinsed your face and examined your bloodshot eyes in the mirror. Gross..Crying is always the most exhausting experience and you hated how dry it left your eyes. After using some eye drops, you retreated into your bedroom and flopped into bed. The cool feeling of your pillow against your weary skin quickly numbed whatever thoughts you had racing in your mind for a change. 

You still felt uneasy but, as you turned over onto your side, you felt somehow relieved. You never wanted to talk about that shit ever again, but saying it all out loud to someone actually didn't kill you surprisingly. You still wished that had all been brought up on your terms instead of having to use your past to defend yourself. Thinking of which...you couldn't help but think about that 2 LV you gained from out of nowhere..

This was becoming a habit lately, you noted, as you gently tried to coerce your soul out into your palm again, but it was resisting. It felt like there was something attached to it, keeping it from coming out easily. You sat up and tugged with more force, willing it to come out and it finally did, but not before a sharp pain blossomed in your chest. Your eyes pinched shut as you winced but the pain came and went in an instant. That's...not a good sign. You opened your eyes and inspected your soul. Still the familiar murky grey that's clung to your soul for years now but you noticed...some purple? It was subtle but beneath the murky clouded grey there looked like purple lines. You brought your soul closer to your face for a better look and really scrutinized what you were seeing. You realized those weren't just lines...they were veins. Thin, barely perceivable purple veins were spider webbed all along the surface of your soul. You had pulled out your soul many times before and never noticed these? A foreign feeling nestled its way into your guts but you shook your head. You were exhausted. Literally exhausted and you were probably just seeing shit now. You would have noticed these earlier if they were really there, right? 

That question had you grabbing your cellphone and pulling up Sans number, as if he was the go-to soul expert... but as you stared at it on the screen you felt less and less like bringing it up to him. Tonight he thought that you were a murderer... and maybe he still does for all you know. You could feel yourself frowning as you clicked off your cellphone screen and put it back on your bed side table. There's no point in making him question your character further...any more soul stuff could wait.

You released your soul and watched it quickly vanish back into your chest, safe and sound. _You should probably stop pulling it out honestly._ You patted your chest and laid yourself down again, forcing any thoughts away for the moment. The gentle rise and fall of your chest was all that you focused on as time slowly crept forward in the darkness of your room. Quietly you drifted off into peaceful slumber.

*Bump.

*Bump..*BANG *CRASH

You jolted awake in your bed as the sound of something smashing echoed through your wall. Your heart was racing a mile a minute as your hazy mind tried to orient reality from your dreams. You jumped out of bed and immediately had the urge to grab your baseball bat, ol' reliable. As you got down on the floor and shoved a hand under the bed, your chest seared with pain. A small gasp escaped your lips as your body froze at the sudden throbbing sensation, and you winced with discomfort. After a moment the pain passed and you could hear a voice yelling from beyond a wall.

"Please no! You can have anything in here but please don't take-!" the sound of a voice came through you a wall muffled, followed by another loud crash. You flinched reflexively at the sound and quickly grabbed your bat. The sound seemed to be coming from your bedroom wall, so you crept a little closer, ol' reliable gripped tightly in both hands. You got close enough to place an ear against the wall and tried to listen as quietly as you could. 

A scream reverberated against your ear from the other room and you stumbled backwards a couple feet. Oh shit...! 

Worry rippled through your chest as you figured your neighbor was being robbed, or worse... You retreated back to your bed and grabbed your cellphone. You were blinded initially as it illuminated but as your eyes adjusted you saw there was already a contact on your screen. You heard another loud bang and as panic swept through you, you sent out a text... then quickly tapped in an emergency number.

*Ring ring, *Ring ring, *Ring ring..

You bit your lower lip, blood threatening to spill as you waited impatiently for the police to pick up.

*click* "Hello, what's your emergency?"

"My neighbors being robbed or something.." you try to quickly explain the situation.. "I'm hearing loud crashes and screaming!" you try to keep your voice down, since your walls are apparently fairly thin.

"Alright ma'am, what's your address?"

You gave out your address and then the woman on the line assured you a police unit will be heading out there as soon as they could. The woman began to say something else before you accidentally ended the call. Fucking hell.... 

Your cellphone light darkened as you clicked it off and stood still in your dark room for a moment,just listening, and realized that there weren't anymore sounds coming from the other side of the wall. Did they hear you? Did they leave? Were you too late? 

You crept out and through your bedroom door as silently as you could and tip toed through your living room until you reached your front door. With the tiniest of clicks, you managed to unlock and open it to peek out into the hallway. No one was there...

You felt something touch your shoulder, making your blood run cold. You didn't realize what you were doing, your body was moving on its own. A shriek tried to rip its way out of your lungs as you whipped the bat madly around you, the force behind it hoping to come into contact with something. But it didn't. Instead a skeletal hand had laid itself over your mouth as your bat was immobilized in midair.

Your muffled wail turned into a deflated sound of relief as you realized Sans was in your living room. You crumpled to your knees as Sans patted your back.

"i guess i had _bat_ timing, you shouldn't-"

"SHH!!" you quickly push him away from the door and close it gently. 

"DUDEmyneighborsarebeingrobbedandIthinkthey'regonnabeoutinthehallwayanyseondand-"

"whoa whoa, wait! i cant understand you if you-"

"Neighbors. Being. Robbed. Didn't you get the text?!" you look at him incredulously as he pulls out his cellphone.

"yeah but whats rigged mean?" you look as confused as him... so he looks down at his phone and reads word for word, "This is weird to ass but could you come get me? Someones getting rigged". You stood up and stepped around him until you could see the screen and scowled a bit.

"Fucking spell check...Robbed... not Rigged.." you rubbed a hand roughly against your face, then you remembered the situation you were in.

"heh, thought it was some new human slang.." Sans watched you reach for the door. Before you could open it he stood up and stopped you, one boney hand gripping around your wrist.

"how about not going _towards_ the danger?" he pulled you away from the door and sat you down on your couch.

"Right... but what if they're out there? I could try to stop them-" Sans interrupted you then.

"by doing what? ....using _this_?" you hadn't paid attention before, but now you noticed that your bat is suspended in mid air. Blue particles were swarming around it and they vanished as Sans gripped the handle of your bat. So he can do even more than just teleport. You made a mental note of that as you watched him heft it in his hand for a moment and then offer it to you. He stared you dead in the eye, still the same expression yet you easily picked up on his implications. You hadn't done anything wrong though, so you reached for it.

"i bet you could do alotta damage, considerin how hard you swung it at me.." you faltered at his words for a second, but then grabbed it anyways.

"Yeah well... you shouldn't sneak up on people... and _they_ probably can do more damage than me honestly.." you jabbed a finger in the direction of the door. "They deserve whatever comes to them..." you mumbled the last part a bit, averting your gaze. You heard a sigh and then one of sans hands came into your view. You looked back up and he had his hand out-stretched, as if waiting for you to take it.

"you asked me to get you out of here, so lets go." He watched as you stared at his hand and then back at his face. 

As if to urge you on, blue particles began swirling in his palm, ready to teleport you both away you imagined. The thought of experiencing actual teleportation sent an excited, albeit terrified shiver down your spine, but even with how cool it sounded, you were reluctant yet.

"I know I did but...what if they need-" you quieted as you heard the sound of a gruff voice out in the hall. You and Sans stared at each other as you both became intensely aware of the situation unfolding just beyond your door.

"Move...now! n' be quiet about't" ... you recognized that voice. But from where? Just as you were trying to place the voice, you noted Sans wearing a similar expression to your own.

"..Do you know that voice?" you spoke barely above a whisper as Sans gently pushed passed you and clicked the door open a slit. He was silently watching through the crack, his frame so still that you might have mistaken him for a Halloween decoration at this point. You were way too antsy for this.

"Sans..! What is it?" he waved a hand behind him, as if telling you to be quiet, and then shut the door. "they are about 10 feet away..and they have a girl with em..." his sockets were dark, his grin forced. He ran a hand over his face. "a monster girl....she looks roughed up". His hand stopped across his mouth and he looked torn as he thought about something.

"They have a _hostage_?! Fuck...we have to help, right? I can't just stand by while someone who needs help is only 10 feet away from me!" you nudged Sans aside and grabbed the door handle, your grip on ol' reliable turning your knuckles white. Your heart was pounding in your ears as your adrenaline kicked up. You're not sure what you can do but maybe you can distract them, or fend them off, or-

As you yanked on the door handle you realized the door wouldn't budge. Your vision was filled with blue as you sent a questioning glare towards Sans. His hands were back in his pocket as he stepped toward you.

"they have guns..as much as i wanna tear those creeps a part, i don't think youll be any help" Sans touched your shoulder and abruptly you felt weightless. 

You felt like you were floating as the world around you instantly fell into darkness. Panic and fear began clawing up your chest, trying to worm its way out of your throat as the eerily familiar darkness began to encompassed you whole. 

You couldn't move. . . all you could do was wait as the white-noise erupting around you threatened to burst your eardrums as time ceased to be for an agonizing moment.

After what seemed like an eternity of dangling in a space your mind was struggling to comprehend, you were ripped out from the darkness, the world around you hurrying to rebuild itself as you stumbled forward suddenly. You tried to regain your bearings as Grillby's neon sign loomed quietly above you. 

With a gasp you drop ol reliable, the sound of its metallic clang echoing loudly down the empty street. You felt your stomach churn as your headache threatened to come back full force. What the hell was that?! You didn't realize you were falling until you felt something hard hook you under an arm, and realized it was Sans.

"whoa, easy there y/n...you okay?" 

"Did you just teleport me...?!" your voice came out slightly shrill as you leaned your back against the building for support. Sans waited for you to regain your composure. " _THAT_ was horrifying!".

Sans winced at the words horrifying and raised both of his hands apologetically, "horri-? sorry for not giving you a heads up but i didnt think youd come willingly."

"Damn right I wouldn't! I thought I was DYING! And on top of that we just abandoned that girl!" you pushed away from the wall only a little shakily. "She'll be long gone by the time anyone shows up!" you felt your face flushing with frustration. She's probably scared, hopeless...and alone. You knew how that felt. This wasn't right...

After making sure you had recovered, Sans took a few steps down the sidewalk, back towards your apartment complex.

"she wont be alone for long, im heading back now...humans still cant keep their hands to themselves.." his words sounded almost angry, or maybe he sounded fed up. He had said it so quietly you barely caught the last part of the sentence through your own thoughts. 

"ill get her out safe one way or another, you should be fine here.." before you could argue Sans had vanished again, leaving you behind. 

What? 

Sans literally just moments ago said that they had guns! What could he possibly do against that? Your stomach had started to settle as you debated running back to your apartment. You barely had any clothes on and you were sure the police would want to talk to the person who called, if they ever showed up... but you were safe here.. well as safe as a barely clothed girl sitting alone in the middle of the town could be. You still had ol reliable at least.

The silence of the night air did nothing to calm your nerves. An internal debate with yourself started as you went over possible scenarios. Maybe he'll reappear with the girl...yeah. That's probably exactly what he'll do. No need to fight at all...

You wanted to feel relieved but as you sank down to the ground all you felt was more worry. You wrapped your arms around your knees and waited. He was going to reappear any second, calm cool and collected. The girl would tumble forward and you would rush to help her feel better from the teleporting experience. He would say a joke and you would laugh and thank him. The thought felt right as the cold, scratchy pavement started to make your ass numb. 

  


Any minute....

  


You could hear far away sirens approaching to your left. You watched strobing lights in the distance get closer and closer until a squad car sped past you. It turned a corner down the road to your right and the sound of its siren began to fade away.

  


Any second now...

  


_What if he is dead?_

  


The sudden thought chilled you and you pressed your face against your knees, struggling to quiet mental images.

  


_What if he is dying. R i g h t. T h i s. S e c o n d. As you sit here, useless, just waiting._

  


Your face felt very warm as tears threatened to drop.

  


_He could be **s c r e a m i n g** for help, but no one will come. No one will be there to stop him from being riddled with bullets._

  


...

  


_It will be you're fault...yet a g a i n.._  


  


You raised your head, hoping to see Sans standing in front of you suddenly...but he wasn't there. As the sound of the sirens finally faded completely, you stood up and started running back towards your apartment complex. You were in a full sprint, your chest heaving violently as it struggled to keep forcing air into your lungs. You had to get back! He was taking way too long! He can teleport for crying out loud! He shouldn't be taking this long...Your thoughts were racing as your feet slapped the pavement and you could feel some stinging pain in your bare heels, but your adrenaline was pumping too hard for you to care. 

After what felt like ages, you had to stop and catch your breath but you were at least halfway home by now. The last time you walked this it felt fairly far away, but you guess you were just walking really slowly that night in the storm. You took a few deep breathes and picked up your same pace, sprinting until your complex came into view.

You couldn't breathe. You took just a moment to try and regain yourself, and cursed at yourself for not being in shape anymore. How long did it take you to get back? What if you were too late! A question you've asked yourself way too many times for one night. You forced yourself to start moving again. 

The squad car was parked out in front, abandoned. They must already be inside. You figured you shouldn't go in the front, they might stop you, so you made your way to the emergency doors at the back. You had to find Sans.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for continuing to read if you've been with me since the start! And thank you for taking the time to read if you just picked up this story recently!  
> Thank you thank you!


	17. Awakened

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Where Reader learns more about themself

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ...I can only apologize for neglecting this story for over a year...

The narrow hall echoed with the sound of your entrance as you pushed past the heavy metal of the emergency doors. You tried to close the doors quietly but they clanked shut in defiance. You winced at the loud noise and hoped no one heard your entry. Once you had taken a few steps inside the only sound you made were the gentle 'pafs' of your bare feet walking as you tried to sneak your way through your apartment building's ill-maintained stairwell. Even though your landlord says the housekeeping keeps up with this part of the building you can tell by the random cigarette butts, empty food wrappers, and...used condoms, gross, littering the floor that he has no idea what's actually going on. A muffled yell drifted down from somewhere above you, so you grabbed onto the stair railing and looked up through the few flights of stairs spiraling upwards.

The stairwell was dimly lit by small lights that ran up the far side of the inner building all the way up to the top floor. The smell was damp, stale, and stagnant reminding you again of just how little this part of the building was actually used (appropriately). As the voices grew more hostile you pushed onward and started your ascension. It was a little bit of a struggle due to the condensation on the cement stairs. You tested your foots grip by sliding it across the stony step to see just how much traction you had... Not much, good to know. 

You had made it to the second floor when you began to be able to decipher some of what the yelling was about. It was hard to make out any words but you knew what was going on. It sounded like the police were yelling at someone. You rushed up the last flight of stairs, careful not to slip, and stopped outside of the top stairwell door. It had one of those horizontal bars to push it open. There was no way you were going to be able to open this silently...but you were damn sure gonna try. You crouched low and gently eased the large handle downwards until you heard a click. With a little extra muscle, you managed to quietly push it open only to be greeted with a fresh onslaught of shouting.

"I Repeat I Need Backup. Suspect is Armed and Dangerous! Send reinforcements _Immediately_." at the opposite end of the hallway, you can see an officer crouched in the emergency stairwell opposite of you and yelling into his handheld transceiver. He has his gun aimed into your doorway, but you can't tell if anyone is standing there. Why are they in your apartment?! Behind him you can see a woman officer readying a gun as well, then she suddenly grips her walkie-talkie and starts hollering into the receiver. 

"We've got a 459/hostage situation. One monster is being held captive by two culprits in black disguise. One suspect is very large, over 6 foot, the other suspect is roughly 5 feet tall. Genders unidentified. There is a possible third unidentif- !" 

She didn't get to finish relaying her message before she was enveloped in a dark blue mist. She was swiftly lifted into the air until she was floating in front of your apartment door, her soul forcefully being pulled out from her chest. The light that shined from it was a mixture of green and red hues all swirling together, but then within an instant her soul was shining in a dark blue. Her hands clawed at an unseen force gripping her around her waist as her feet thrashed in midair. Your heart stuttered for a moment.

"Michael! MICHAEL GET OUT OF HERE!" her voice was raw and unhinged as you could tell that the panic was setting in. 

You didn't understand what exactly was going on but you knew from experience what was holding her up. Blue magic that you had only recently been introduced to. Magic that could stop a bat from being swung.... and then suspend it in midair... Sans's magic....But why would Sans be attacking an officer? What is going on?! You stood up and felt your grip on your bat loosen a bit. If it was Sans you were dealing with then if you hurried maybe you could clear up whatever miscommunication was happening. Sans wasn't one of those bad guys, this had to be in self-defense. 

You started jogging towards the door as the other officer stood to his feet to help his partner. 

"Holy Shit, LAURA!" the other officer grabbed for her leg but soon realized it was a hopeless struggle to free her. He then quickly aimed his gun and let off a shot into the doorway. As you covered your ears with your hands at the sudden sound, you could hear a scream ring out from inside of that apartment. Your chest suddenly seared with pain as you remembered just a little while earlier hearing a similar scream from the other side of your bedroom wall. No, you were sure it was the same scream. She was still here.. that monster girl. So what the hell is Sans doing!? Your thoughts were cutoff by a wave of ungodly shrieks. Startled, you turned your sights back to the floating officer only to see that her midriff was beginning to constrict rapidly. She coughed up blood and screeched out in pain. What the fuck was happening?!

"STOP! PLEASE!" Laura's cries echoed through the entire hall, sending a shiver down your spine. The other officer must have been spurned on by her cries cause he suddenly barreled into the open apartment, gun reloaded. 

You had to do something! 

You were running now, full sprint down the last half of the hallway towards your apartment. You were sure you weren't imagining it...you could hear a dull snapping sound even over her echoing screams. You imagined that was the sound of her lower ribs being cracked inwards but you were no doctor. You wanted to look away but the scene unfolding before you had your gaze frozen onto the helpless woman in the air. You stopped a few feet away from her. You didn't know what to do. Her waist was so collapsed in on itself that you were almost positive she could never recover..... She gurgled through the blood, her strength waning as she still attempted to free herself from the phantom grip.

At this angle... she saw you. And she was wide-eyed, terrified... You locked eyes and instantly regretted it. Her expression was something you had only ever seen in nightmares. You could almost see the pain and fear dripping from her, you couldn't imagine what expression you were showing her in return. She looked as if she was pleading to you to help her, to get her away from whatever caught her. But you couldn't.. She was begging for help, but nobody was coming. Then the constricting stopped suddenly. 

Multiple gunshots were fired in rapid succession and then silence followed. The woman was still in the air but at least the torture had stopped. You took a step closer to investigate. Faster than you could react, something was sent flying out of the doorway, and it wasn't until it hit the wall that you realized it was a body. The male officer choked out a wail as he made impact, blood gushing from his mouth. His head lolled forward. You felt the urge to run over and help but your survival instincts stopped you. If you made a move now you would die..for sure.. So you just stood there, dumbfounded. 

After a moment he managed to lift his head and noticed you standing mere feet away. His eyes widened as he tried to lift his hand towards you. 

The sound of an entire gun's magazine being emptied scared you enough to make you fall and scurry backwards. Your head was pounding from the close gun shots as you covered your ears and stared wide eyed. Whoever was in the doorway was now unloading every last bullet the officer had in his gun... into his torso. Blood sprayed and splattered in all directions, coating you with stray drops with every impact. The bloody mess of a body twitched and jolted with each hit until there were no bullets left. A few empty clicks followed and then a deadly silence that fell over the hall. You realized you just watched that man die.... Panic gripped you stronger as the need to scream began gradually building up inside of you. The bloodied corpse was all you could see as you began to feel cold and shake. 

Who...how could someone do this? Was Sans really in there?! Only a monster can use that kind of magic...

You were too terrified to move.. For a moment you could hear nothing but your own breathing as you became hyper aware of the situation you were in. You needed to move, you needed to leave! As you tried to untangle your nerves, a hand came into your view slowly, reaching out of your doorway. It was covered by a black glove and was flipped over, palm side up, as if it were about to catch something falling. With a gentle flick of the wrist it looked as if it were beckoning something forwards. Your blood ran cold as you wondered who that hand belonged to. Did they know you were there? Sitting practically outside of the door? If they approach, should .... should you go willingly? You saw what they did to the officers...what they could do to you.. How could you escape?

Then you noticed it. A soul with a dull yellow and purple light, ascending from the bullet-riddled corpse towards the outstretched hand. You felt guilty at the relief you felt for a moment as you realized you were still unnoticed. The little soul floated through the air and as soon as it was within reach the gloved hand snatched it up and vanished back out of view. Your heart was pounding a mile a minute as you tried to stand up. You kept your eyes glued on the apartment doorway as you slowly took a few steps backwards. 

A gurgle snapped your attention back to the woman floating in the hall. She seemed like she was trying to say something to you. Her eyes were bloodshot now, with bloody splatters from her partner streaking down one side of her face. She kept eye contact with you through drooping eyelids and tried to speak but her voice was just a raspy whisper at this point. You watched her lips and quickly understood what her message was:

.."run".. 

You swallowed the lump in your throat and gave her a small nod.

With jittery nerves you try to pull yourself together. You went to lift your bat into a better grip but didn't realize how sweaty your palms were. It slipped between your fingers and as you managed to catch it, it clanged loudly against the wall.

Shit! SHITSHITSHIT!

You were sprinting now, full speed back down that hallway and crashed through the emergency doorway, cutting a sharp right turn as you began your descent downwards. You needed to haul ass out of there! You heard a loud clang above you as you made it to the top of the bottom floor stairs. You chanced a glance upwards when you suddenly slipped on the slick landing. Your toe bent under your unchecked weight and you gasped as you toppled downwards. You were rolling now and for a split second you could see someone in black peering at you from the top of the stairs, then your shoulder smashed hard on the edge of a step. You cried out as you heard a snap before tumbling and smacking your head on the first floor. 

....You could faintly taste blood as you slowly started to come to. The murky atmosphere of the stairwell had you mildly disoriented as you tried to figure out what happened. Choking fear gripped you again as you remembered what was going on. How long had you been out?! You scrambled to get to your feet but quickly fell back over as mind boggling pain radiated from one of your lower extremities. You propped yourself up and looked down at your legs. Your legs weren't broken as far as looks go but as you gazed at your feet something looked extremely wrong. Like you had a foot growing out of your ankle. Panic set in as you realized what you had done... You broke your foot...horrendously! 

The sight caused you to quickly grip your mouth as you screamed into your hands, your muffled wailing echoing up the stairs. Bile threatened to rise as the pain intensified up your left leg. Loud chortling echoed down from above you. Your head whipped back as you frantically searched to find the source and you saw someone standing directly above you, casually hanging over the railing. They were wearing all black and had their face exposed...a face you could never forget. 

"You dun fucked up missy!..." The short man hopped away from the railing and began sauntering towards the top of the stairs to look down at you from another angle. He ran a hand through his still greasy looking hair and smirked down his nose at you. You could already feel your irritation rising. 

"Well lookie wat we got 'ere! An old friend!" Steve began leisurely walking down the stairs, one hand trailing along the stair rail. "Never thought id get the chance t'talk wit you again, but 'ere we are! How ya doin'? Did ya get urself hurt?" he stepped off the last step and had the toothiest, smuggest grin on his ugly face. His voice was so condescending, so full of itself, that your fear vanished and was replaced with a strong urge to punch him in the face.

You scowled and sat in a more upright position.

"I fell but _at least_ I managed to not vomit everywhere and make a disgusting spectacle out of myself..." your nose wrinkled at the thought and Steve's grin faltered a bit. 

"Still bitchy as ever. That mouths gonna get ya into alotta trouble one a these days...... _A lot_.." his grin was gone as he took a few steps closer to you, his eyes focused on your form.

You couldn't help but feel your fear return a bit as he looked you over, but you pushed it down, refusing to let him notice it. You needed to get out of here. Steve was an idiot but if he is part of this nightmare....

"I was reaaalll nice t'ya that night at that monster infested shitter. An all ya could do wer shrug off my kindn'ss. Yknow how that made m'feel? Stupid. _Real fuckin stupid_." 

You tried to slide yourself back and away, but every movement made your foot send stabs of pain in protest. You winced and looked up to see Steve hovering over you a mere foot away. Before you could react he deftly kicked your broken ankle, sending you into a screaming fit of pain and shock. Your body flopped over and onto the ground as you rolled onto your side, gripping your shin since that was the closest to your ankle you could touch without making the pain worse. You were crying full blown tears as you laid there on the ground. You couldn't focus on anything else other than the pain. 

More laughter finally reached your ears through your pain as Steve bellowed and chortled with glee.

"Yer a riot! This'd ne'er get old!" he pulled his leg back for another kick and you scrambled frantically to put anything between him and your ankle.

You managed to fling forward your arms and head just in time to receive a heavy kick to your temple. As your body jerked to the right, all you could hear was ringing. Your eyes felt like they should have popped out of skull from the impact. You placed a hand over your head as you laid prone. Steve crouched down and pulled your hand away.

"I jus wanna take this mom'nt in before we move on missy!"

You couldn't think let alone resist. You let your arm hang limply from his grip as you tried to will your head to stop spinning. 

He made a hissing noise with his mouth as he stooped closer.

"Thats'a shiner alrite! That'd take a while t'heal up if you wer gonna live that long!" 

He guffawed but his peels of joy suddenly turned into shrieks. You heard him squeal as something heavy clanged loudly against something metal, and then felt something hard cradle you. You slightly opened your eyes to find Sans next to you holding you up by your shoulders. 

"eat this." you felt something hard being pushed passed your lips but clenched your teeth. You could not trust him if he was using his magic to...to.. 

You narrowed your eyes, you even managed to frown at him. But he was determined. You felt hard, slender bones break past your clenched teeth and force it down your throat, literally. Like a sick dog or helpless animal! 

You found a previously untapped well of strength and pushed him away from you angrily. You coughed and turned to him.

"What the hell Sans!? What do you think you're doing?! You got some nerve!" you wiped your mouth and faintly tasted ketchup. You were unsure how you felt about that.. 

Sans sighed, relieved, and stood back up again, sweat rolling profusely off of his skull.

"glad youre okay. not the first time ive have to shove medicine past a set of pearly whites" he chuckled weakly.

"Okay?? How is _this_ okay?!" you pointed at your ankle but he just stood there as if you were overreacting. 

You looked at him, both pissed off and confused, and noticed your ankle wasn't hurting. You almost did a double take as you gazed down at the somehow mended bone... 

You gently pulled your leg towards yourself, wincing reflexively and found that your foot was back to normal. It truly wasn't broken! Holy shit! 

"Holy Shit! It's healed!" 

"i slipped ya some monster candy, pretty _sweet_ right?" He gave you a grin and ran a boney hand across his skull, wiping some sweat away.

You stood up and tested out your ankle. It felt just like it did before, hell, even your ears had stopped ringing. You didn't fully understand how he healed you but were so relieved you almost forgot where you were...and what was happening. You tensed again as you remembered the dead officers just upstairs.... With your arms crossed tightly you tried to look at Sans but couldn't keep eye contact with him. What if he really killed those people?...

"Sans...what's going on? Why...or..." you fumbled over your words for a moment as you realized you were about to accuse someone of the unthinkable... 

"Did you use your magic on those officers?" your voice quieted, like you could barely say the words.. "Did _you_ kill them?" memories of a chat you had just recently rose to the surface of your mind. You didn't think you'd be having this conversation again.. 

Sans looked at a loss for what to say, he looked fearful or...stunned...or both? It was hard to figure out through his constant grin. He definitely didn't look happy..

" that wasn't me...i would never use magic on an innocent person like that." His constant grin slipped, turning into the saddest expression you've seen him in. You didn't think it was possible for him to not be smiling...! His expression shifted into a slightly angrier one as if he realized something. 

"what are you even doing here-?!.." a gun shot rang out and hit the wall next to you.

You ducked down and then spun around to find Steve leaning against the stair railing. The railing looked like it had been bent inwards by an impact. Steves right arm drooped uselessly at his side while his left arm was raised, gun in hand. He looked like he was in pain but you have no clue as to what happened. 

"Ya fuckin monster scum! That woulda went right threw that shiny skull a yers if ya hadnt fucked up m'good arm! But this next shot wont miss.." 

Steve closed one eye and aimed the barrel straight at Sans, who didn't seem too worried. Unlike you. You were about 95% sure he could teleport away before getting shot, but the chance that he couldn't...you shuddered as you stood in place.

The seconds passed slowly as you and Sans both waited for the gun to fire but Steve just kept staring at Sans. 

"Yknow..I was lookin' fer ya that night at the bar, skeleton man. "Sans"?" Steve slowly said his name and kept his sights focused on the skeleton monster by your side. 

Sans didn't react, he just kept perfectly still, not even a breath escaping him. The only thing that changed were his pupils. They were gone, leaving behind vacant, dark, sockets. 

"M'sure thats it, cuz I read all about ya! In fact, Im a big fan! Must be real fun t'have them teleportin' powers n such."

Steve slowly moved his arm and aimed it at you instead. You visibly stiffened. 

"If im 'memberin' correctly, as cool as that power is, it has its limits...You a'ready been doin' an awful lota magic usin' tonight mr. hero. Think ya can save 'er too?" Steve's smirk returned as he gazed down the reticle of his gun.

Your eyes went wide as the realization kicked in. You chanced a glance at Sans and he _did_ look worn out. More tired than when he left you at Grillby's....His under eyes were very dark and he wasn't moving. Was he trying to conserve energy? At any rate... you needed a way out of this situation..

"I'll be fine, there's no way he can hit me with the condition he's in." You put on a fake smirk and wave your hand dismissively in Steve's direction. You try to sound confident but you just needed to buy some time, or get asshole to lose his focus..but your knees were shaking, and your chest was heavy, and you were very aware of Sans staring at you. You hoped the tearful sensation in your eyes wouldn't give away just how lost you really felt.

"If tonight's _anything_ like that night at Grillby's he'll just _fuck_ it all up again. He couldn't even _land a punch_ on me! He's just a _short_ , pathetic little man with a small d-dick." Fuck, you stuttered... 

Steve visibly wavered at that comment anyways.

"Keep talkin' lil missy and-" Steve snarled as he was cut off by you.

"I feel bad for that _blonde bimbo_ he had with him!" you raised your voice.

You were getting to him! You forced yourself to stand up straight and decided the best option was to charge him. Sans still hadn't moved an inch and was just taking the situation in. You hoped he understood what you were trying to do.. If you could get Steve to lose focus for even a moment, you or Sans could get to him. You might get shot but if he doesn't kill you then that's a win at least. Otherwise... you imagined a lifeless skeleton and a corpse were going to be lying on this floor in a couple minutes..

I was wondering if she was his _mom_ or his _sister_." 

"FUCK YOU!" Steve snarled and stamped his foot like a child having a temper tantrum, his gaze averted. Perfect.

You felt like you were moving in slow motion as you began to dart forward. 

One step. Steve looked surprised as he moved his gun without properly aiming. You could do this!

Two steps. You just needed to get to him!

Three steps, four steps! You reached out towards the gun, your hand eclipsing it from your sight. This...this is bad. You weren't fast enough!

You could see his hand squeeze tightly and braced yourself before he pulled the trigger. With your eyes snapped shut, you tried to duck down. 

**The gunshot rang out and you felt something.**

As you opened your eyes your vision was filled with bright blue particles.. and the back of Sans hoodie. 

"SANS!" you tried to steady yourself as you grabbed onto him but there was nothing solid to support you. Your head felt cold and hot at the same time. You clumsily fell onto your hands and knees and looked down. On the ground was a blue hoodie, covered in fading blue particles, and a scattering of dust. Blood dripped into your vision and splattered onto the blue material. You raised a hand to your head and felt a finger slide into a deep wound. Your head was very warm..and very wet. You gasped in pain, bringing your hand back into view. It was red. Only red. He must have got you...

Blood gushed down from the top of your head and into your eyes. You tried to wipe it away and felt your eyes welling with tears. He was gone. Just like that. You were trying to process what just happened. Did Sans just, _die_? You looked at your hands covered in dust and blood...with rage. You felt detached from the world around you for a moment. You couldn't believe this was happening...then you noticed something shining from your peripheral vision.

"HAHA JACKPOT! WHOO~ Lookit all that dust! Didn't think he was gunna really do it! Glad he did though hehe! I thoug't he would jus tele'port behind me!" 

Steve leaned on the railing and twirled his gun, proudly. 

"Guess he wasn' as fast as we thought, eh missy? Ya shoulda shut yer trap when I.... whoa, whoa whoa. What do you think yer doin'?" 

You had stood up.. Steve was still a good couple meters away... _you really weren't close at all.._

"Ya sad? Well dontchu worry yer lil head over it, imma be sending you after him shortly. So why dont ya just lay down and make a dust angel to send em off!"

Steve laughed hard and loud, so much so that he failed to notice you picking up your bat.

Your right hand tightened around the handle as you focused on Steve. You couldn't tell how you were feeling, you were so furious. _Your foolish plan caused Sans to have to protect you. To die._

Then suddenly it was gone. 

You couldn't pinpoint any emotions, all you felt was nothing. It was as if nothing mattered...and that feeling gripped you like a vice.

" _I'm going to kill you_." your voice was flat, eyes hooded and emotionless as you started walking forward.

Steve took a moment to wipe his eyes as he barely gave you any consideration.

"Look, ive got a gun, n' ya got a...bat." Steve frowned as he noticed your weapon but carried on anyways.

"Plus I already gotcha once! Theres no way yer even gonna be able t'reach me. Just give't up! B'tter yet..." His grin faded to a more serious expression. "lemme put ya out'a yer misery.." 

Steve twirled the gun to a stop in his hand and aimed it at you, but you had already started sprinting. He let loose a shot that whizzed passed your head. Another shot, and a third that finally hit you in your chest by your shoulder. You staggered as it knocked you off balance for a moment but you didn't lose any momentum thanks to your adrenalin. 

_You were now upon him at the base of the stairs. He was panicking as he floundered_ with the gun trying to reload it with only one arm, until he dropped it. You were about to take aim, until he took a swing at you. It was another shitty hay maker. You stumbled backwards _down a step to avoid it as he failed to make contact, again_. While he was trying to get his balance back you pulled your bat back as far as you could, then whipped it around with both hands.

The bat collided with his neck and lower jaw, creating a satisfying crunch beneath the metal of your bat. A few teeth came flying out of his mouth as he crumpled to the floor. He wasn't dead though. He laid motionless on the floor as you raised the bat up into the air and smashed it down again on his skull. Another satisfying thud sounded out as you repeated the process again and again. Blood was spurting in every direction as the pulpous flesh gave way to your bat. At first his limbs would twitch and move with the force of every impact, but eventually the corpse stopped reacting. _There was no way to distinguish_ bone from meat anymore. All you could imagine was his smug grin and all you could smell was blood. 

The overwhelming feeling of nothingness was fading away to giddiness. Joy even. You laughed as you smashed the bat down onto his rib cage. _The cracking feeling was euphoric_ as you wailed on the rest of his body. Your giggles became peels of laughter which _escalated_ to howls and then manic screeching. You _pummeled the corpse_ for as long as your body had the _energy to do so, your lungs screeching_ out confused emotions. 

Finally, you stopped. Your chest was heaving heavily as your breaths came in ragged strokes. Your bat was slick with blood and fluids and was hard to keep a hold of anymore. You let it fall at your side with a rolling clang as you slumped down to your knees. 

The nothingness had returned. You looked at your hands and could not recognize them. They looked so pale and skinny, and covered in blood. All at once the horror of what you had just done brought you back to your senses. The smell was _cloying_ and gagged you. You scrambled backwards away from the gory mess you had just made, disgusted and afraid...of yourself. You realized you were sobbing hysterically.

As you stumbled backwards down the stairs you couldn't stop looking at the bloody corpse. 

_This is the kind of person you are. You e n j o y e d that._

You grabbed your head, trying to block out the thoughts.

"No..no I'm not...!" 

_You killed your mother....you killed this man.....you even killed Sans...._

"No... SHUT UP! _SHUT UP!_ " 

As you wrestled with your thoughts you did not notice the man watching you from above, and it barely registered when he suddenly appeared in front of you. You managed to take a single step backwards before you were raised into the air, floating with ease. It felt as if you were dangling from your neck. Your soul, cracked and grey, floated in front of you before suddenly taking on the color of dark blue. Images of the helpless police woman upstairs flooded your mind as you realized you were caught in the same snare. You couldn't breathe. You tried to scream but something invisible was around your head. Your head was bent back at such an angle that all you could see was the ceiling and dark blue particles dancing in your vision.

Ignoring your frantic struggle, the man walked closer and looked up at you. He gently lifted his hand and grabbed your soul, bringing it closer to his face.

"I was sure your soul would be orange or yellow...but blue? Though it's absolutely disgusting.." He grimaced down at your souls appearance. He pulled out some sort of large glass bottle that had a lid with clamps on either side. With a push of a button the bottle was open and your soul was deposited inside. As soon as the lid closed you felt your strength vanish. Your arms flopped to your side like a ragdoll, and your body went still. The panic and fear were gone without a trace and your mind was blank. You were no longer here, but inside the glass bottle.

"Either way, it's my lucky day girly.." he let your soulless body fall to the floor as he kneeled down in front of you. He stared into your glazed eyes for a moment before standing up and placing his foot on your head. "Gotta make a clean cut. No hard feelings, not that you mind, right?". 

***

All at once you were floating in dark nothingness again. It was almost welcoming if not for the deafening static. You could not _feel_ your body but you were aware you had a form of some sort. You were getting used to this place and slowly your vision adjusted to the surroundings. You had no sense of time as you allowed yourself to just be for a while. The static lessened until there was only silence. You wondered if this was death. You suddenly remembered being here before. Barely discernible thoughts of a game night that never happened seeped into your mind, followed by images of a pale face with bright blue eyes piercing through you from above. That's when you saw it. Barely there against the absolute void that surrounded you, yet close enough to touch. 

It's pale limbs were the only thing that kept it visible at all. _"Shall we try ... a g a i n, (y/n) ?"_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Golly, and so the ever riveting story continues. Only my intent never grew... 
> 
> Thank you to any readers that remember this story and decided to read the latest chapter. Truly thank you, and I apologize for being a shitty updater. A year goes by faster than I thought it would...and trying to get this story out of my head is way harder than I thought it would be. I hope that I can improve..
> 
> Also, this chapter would be fun to write from Sans perspective... 
> 
> Anyways, thank you for reading!
> 
> (Also I am engaged, bought a house, graduated college, and got a dog *cough* a lot has happened...)


	18. Arc 2 : Back to the Past ch.1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Welcome to the new arc!  
> I decided that the last chapter was a good enough spot to stop and start the next arc of the story! Full of more edge, more characters, and maybe some answers! Definitely one or two answers, and a shit ton more questions! There will be 3 arcs in all overall. We're 1/3 of the way there.
> 
> If for some reason this feels out of place or like its ruining the pace of the story, comment and let me know! I had wanted to get to a certain point in Arc1 before starting Arc2 but... this felt like a fun break from all the dark stuff... 
> 
> Just let me know!

It was no use. No matter how many times he went over the calculations an answer would not present itself. His fingers clacked and scritched violently across the forehead of his skull as he absentmindedly fidgetted whilst in deep thought. 

"even if i divide it by the variables and apply that to...no no...this will never work.." Sans groaned and let his face fall to the desk with an audible "clank" which caused a few papers to float off the desk, disturbed from their resting place. A long sigh escaped him and he let his skull lull sideways so he could view the clock on the far wall.

"5am...Paps is gonna kill me..." his cheeks gently lifted into a weary grin as he thought about getting home, but before long his face quickly returned to a long frown. There had to be a better way to go about figuring this out. 

With another sigh he lifted his head and pushed himself up, rising from his chair. His eyes were just dim specks of light, and his bones creaked and cracked as he forced his body into an upright position. A hiss escaped through his teeth as he winced at all the aches he had been ignoring up until now. With a few firm rubs to his shoulders and a quick neck crack, he collected his backpack and headed out through his office door. Just before he locked it he noticed a post-it note on his door window.

> _"If you forget to turn off your lights again I will take half of the electric bill out of your paycheck and buy the newest season of  
>  "KissyCutie: MewForceGo". All 20 episodes!!!  >:3c _ \- Al" 

"that was close..." he snickered at the note and tucked it into his pocket as he went back into his office. After all the lights were off he locked his door and finally allowed himself to leave.

He had been working on this formula since 5pm yesterday evening and had made zero progress...There had to be something he was missing. While he mused to himself his quick fingers buttoned up his coat halfway and fixed his hood on top of his skull. 

Each of his footfalls echoed throughout the sterile hallway, the florescent lights above emitted a low buzz in the absolute silence. It was eerily quiet emphasizing just how late he had stayed tonight. It wasn't as if this was the first all-nighter he had ever pulled but it wasn't something he wanted to get used to doing again..

Once he reached the end of the white hall a guard greeted him on a screen above the double locked steel doors.

"Hey Sans! I thought the crew had already left for the day. You want to stop by the box for lunch? Well...more like breakfast now!" Sans could see the guard possibly typing something and grabbing a key-card from his breast pocket. The guard swiped it across a black pad on a wall. A green laser light scanned the card and the doors pulled apart on Sans' end allowing him to leave.

"nah, i gotta get home and get some shuteye before work t'nite.." Sans walked through the entryway and stopped next to the entrance to the guards room. 

It was undetectable from the hall until a panel slowly opened up, mechanical sounds reverberating through the wall, revealing a room hidden behind it. The panel stopped opening just enough to reveal a thick window of glass and a steel door. You could see the rest of this guard area through the window. The side walls were lined with black lockers and the back wall was a giant screen full of different surveillance monitors. A single white slate table sat in the middle of the room with a few forms lying on it. It was large enough to seat about 10 people. 

The guard who was talking to Sans threw open the steel door and hung out of it, blocking the way for Sans.

"Aw, you never have time for lunch anymore.." Sans could see through the man's thick beard that he had put on an exaggerated pouty face. The guard had a deep voice with melodious undertones.

" never? we just had lunch yesterday. im still pickin' meat outta my teeth.. dont need this stickin to my _bones_. im gonna pick next time.." A yawn escaped from Sans as he tried to focus.

"I _refuse_. Last time you brought in three bottles of ketchup for lunch and thought that was a proper meal! _My trust has been betrayed!_ " He gave Sans a half glare and dramatically put his hands on his hips. He was going to say something else but suddenly changed gears.

"Oh! Back to our last topic, that pulled pork was delicious right?" Hugo was leaning against the glass window of the guards room now, stroking his beard in contemplation. He let his eyes close as he recalled the details.

"It just melts in your mouth. The BBQ they used was seasoned P.E.R.F.E.C.T.L.Y! Perfectly~!" He overly enunciated each letter out loud as he remembered their lunch from yesterday. 

"You have to admit, no monster recipes can _even COMPARE_ \- HEY!" Hugo had opened his eyes half-lidded to look at Sans but Sans had fallen asleep while standing there.

"You're so damn rude sometimes!" Hugo acted put-out by Sans antics but nudged the skeleton awake. "Fine..I'll let you go. You choose lunch tonight but you better not leave me hanging again! G'nite!"

Sans blinked wearily as he waved at Hugo who then vanished behind the secret wall. He slapped his cheekbone a couple times to wake up as he walked to the exit.

With a firm push the door swung open, greeting him with a flurry of snow and wind as he trudged up the snowy steps and out onto the city street. The sun was just beginning to approach the horizon, throwing halos of light around the tops of the buildings.

There was no one on the boulevard as he emerged from the cellar side-stairway of the old building. From the outside it just looked like an ill-maintained brick building for generic use, unassuming and easily looked over. 

He turned and started to walk towards home. As he walked the wind picked up, tossing his hood from his skull and blowing it every which way. He grabbed at it and yanked it down hard over his head. He stomped his feet as he made his way slowly down the road. 

The snow was caking at the base of his shorts, weighing him down, when he finally gave up. From out of his coat pocket he pulled out a few packets of ketchup. He tossed all of them, wrapper included, into his mouth and swallowed them whole. Immediately his eyes flickered slightly brighter and he willed what little energy he had gained into his magic. 

With a quick snap of the fingers, he created a magical link between where he stood and his front porch. A portal formed in front of him and he just needed to walk through. Just a few steps forward..

Sans tried to take a step but did not have the energy to do so while also maintaining the portal. 

"..son of a bitch.." 

"SANS! WATCH YOUR LANGUAGE, THERE ARE CHILDREN PRESENT..." A black gloved mitt reached out of the portal and tugged him through. Just as he passed through it his magic died, returning reality back to its previous state. Holding him up was a tall cool skeleton in full winter garb. He had on black fluffy mittens, a fuzzy red winter hat with ear flaps, and a fluffy long red scarf over his usual battle body. Ice skates that were strung together swung gently from his neck as he leaned down to get a closer look at Sans. Sans could see the worry plastered on his brothers face.

"BROTHER, ARE YOU ONLY JUST GETTING HOME FROM WORK?" Papyrus held Sans steady for a moment before Sans made his way up the stairs of their porch. 

A small kid sitting at the top of the stairs scootched over to give Sans some extra room. They were wearing a blue and white striped winter coat, a matching blue winter hat with ear flaps, and a pair of worn out sneakers. The child appeared to be squinting down at a pair of ice skates in their lap. As Sans got closer they grinned up at him and pointed at their skates.

"heh sorry Frisk, as much as id like to go ice skatin' with you guys i gotta _chill_ out here for a bit.." Sans tried to sit but instead plopped down onto the top step next to Frisk.

Frisk made a face at the rejected invite but shrugged and hopped off the porch to the sidewalk. They tucked and rolled as they landed and struck a pose receiving a chuckle from Sans and applause from Papyrus. They then crouched and began to form a pile of snowballs.

Papyrus fidgeted with his gloves as if he had something to say. 

"SANS..?"

"yeah bro?"

Papyrus' brows scrunched up as he tried to find the words, his mouth opening then closing and then opening again before he noticed the look on Sans' face. Sans had a good idea of what Papyrus wanted to say...

". . . Nevermind. Just Get Some Rest." Papyrus' shoulders slumped as he looked lost. Sans was about to say something but Papyrus suddenly straightened up again. Papyrus puffed out his chest and had his usual demeanor back.

"SURELY YOU MUST BE HUNGRY BROTHER! I REHEATED - I MEAN - I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, HAS PREPARED A DELICIOUS SPAGHETTI BREAKFAST FOR YOU! FULL OF ALL THE ITALIAN NUTRIENTS YOU NEED TO GET YOUR ENERGY BACK! SUCH AS THE EVER POPULAR, MUCH-LIKE-THE-GREAT-PAPYRUS, "PASTA" AND THE LESS-POPULAR-BUT-STILL-VERY-GREAT "SAUCE"! I EVEN ADDED AN EXTRA SPECIAL NUTRIENT TO THIS DISH..!"

He paused for dramatic effect as he waggled his eyebrows down at Frisk, earning himself a giggle, before continuing.

"CHEEESE"! NYEH HEH HEH!!!" Papyrus posed confidently as he imagined his spaghetti being the ultimate restoration solution.

Sans grinned lazily at his brother and relaxed a bit on the porch.

"thanks Paps, that sounds great. you always know just what i need.."

Papyrus gave one last "NYEH" in agreement before whisking Frisk up and onto his shoulders and away from the giant pile of snowballs they had created. Frisk laughed as Papyrus began to jog in place, bouncing the child up and down haphazardly.

"MAKE SURE YOU EAT ALL OF IT! EVERY LAST BITE!" Papyrus was unable to hide all of his worry from his face as he stared back at his brother.

Sans nodded and stood himself up. "sure thing, have fun guys.." 

Sans waved as Papyrus, satisfied with Sans' answer, turned himself and Frisk away and began to jog down the road towards the park. Sans watched them grow further away in the distance before vanishing around a corner.

After a moment he managed to stand up and get himself inside the house. He looked towards the kitchen where his breakfast sat but opted to lay down first. He flopped onto the living room couch and was asleep before Frisk and Papyrus even reached the park.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks, as always, for reading!
> 
> This whole arc is going to be from Sans perspective. It probably will not have as many chapters as the first arc but I thought this might be a refreshing way to re-ignite my passion for this story and to give you guys some answers!
> 
> Also for Hugo's voice im kinda hearing like a flamboyant McCree (overwatch)...is that even possible? The southern drawl, plus the deepness, plus flamboyant dramaticness....
> 
> Thank you all again!


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